Author - Jerry Paxton

Trials Fusion Empire of the Sky Launch Trailer

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SAN FRANCISCO, CA  – August 20, 2014 – Today, Ubisoft released Empire of the Sky, the second of six planned downloadable content packs for Trials Fusion™. Available now for Season Pass holders and $4.99 for players without the Season Pass, Empire of the Sky brings new tracks, challenges, editor objects and achievements to Trials Fusion.

After exploring the wastelands in Riders of the Rustlands, Empire of the Sky takes players to new heights. Ride through the floating islands of the privileged, who lead their lives blissfully unaware of the problems of the lands below. Sheltered in their dome of ultra-comfort, these citizens reside in a utopia that hides its own secrets to be unveiled.

Nine new tracks have been added, consisting of single player tracks, along with one Supercross track, one Skill Game, and one FMX track. In addition, there are 18 new Track Challenges, including secret locations and mini-games. Track editors also have dozens of new objects at their disposal including anti-gravity technology, force fields, and floating platforms to help create the track of their dreams.

The Season Pass is still available for purchase for $19.99. Players will receive Empire of the Sky and Riders of the Rustlands today and all future DLC at no additional cost. The final four pieces of DLC will be released by May 2015.

Developed by RedLynx in collaboration with Ubisoft Shanghai and Ubisoft Kiev, Trials Fusion has sold over one million copies and offers players an unlimited array of obstacles and challenges as they race against the clock to set track records.

For the latest information on Trials Fusion, please visit: www.trialsgame.com.

For the latest on all of Ubisoft’s games, please visit ubiblog.com

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ESL One Counter Strike: Global Offensive Viewership Record Broken

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(Cologne, Germany) August 20, 2014 – The world’s largest independent eSports brand, ESL, broke industry records once again with its world class ESL One product. Hosted at gamescom, ESL One Cologne 2014 saw the best Counter Strike: Global Offensive teams from all over the world compete for US$250,000 in community-funded prize money as a peak online concurrent viewership (both in-game and on Twitch) of 409,368 watched the action unfold.

‘Pure’ spectator viewership on leading streaming platform, Twitch, was reported to be an astounding 343,638 peak concurrent. This sees the previous record from March this year beaten by over 153% for an event that had Counter Strike: Global Offensive become the ‘most watched’ game on Twitch throughout the majority of its duration.

“It’s amazing to see the growth of Counter Strike: Global Offensive in the eSports community. Just five months after ESL One Katowice, we see ESL One Cologne 2014 break our previous record by an amazing 161%,” said Ulrich Schulze, Managing Director Pro Gaming at ESL. “We had over ten million sessions and were just shy of three million unique viewers for ESL One Cologne 2014. It’s absolutely amazing to see and we’re all very excited to get back to work and see where we can take Counter Strike: Global Offensive next.”

The tournament, which ran from Thursday (14th August) to Sunday (17th August) crowned Ninjas in Pyjamas champions of ESL One Cologne 2014 after a grueling week of intense competition. An astounding 856 years of content were watched over the span of just four days. – In case you missed out on any of the action, more information can be found at www.esl-one.com and www.eslgaming.com.

Halloween Horror Nights Tickets Now On Sale

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Universal City, CA, August 19, 2014Tickets are now on sale for “Halloween Horror Nights” at Universal Studios Hollywood as Southern California’s leading Halloween event becomes “More Dead Than Ever,” expanding to 22 select nights with more mazes than ever, from FridaySeptember 19 through Sunday, November 2, 2014.

Tickets to this year’s event are available for purchase at www.HalloweenHorrorNights.com/hollywood, including a Front of Line ticket option that enables guests to enjoy priority access at each “Halloween Horror Nights” maze, Terror Tram and theme park attraction.  Advance purchase is recommended as event nights will sell out.

“As the movie studio that invented the horror film genre, we hold ourselves to a very high standard in producing the best and most terrifying Halloween experience,” said John Murdy, Creative Director at Universal Studios Hollywood and Executive Producer of “Halloween Horror Nights.”  “Our ongoing collaboration with today’s most influential filmmakers and musicians, and movie and television horror properties, contributes to the authenticity of ‘Halloween Horror Nights’ and delivers one of the scariest, most compelling experiences anywhere.  This year will be ‘More Dead Than Ever’ with more event nights and even more mazes, and we can’t wait.”

Halloween Horror Nights” 2014 will feature a slate of all-new haunted attractions including, “The Walking Dead: The End of the Line,” inspired by Season 4 of AMC’s Golden Globe®-nominated and Emmy® Award-winning TV series. The bone-chilling maze will place guests at the heart of a harrowing journey to seek sanctuary at Terminus, an elusive destination that promises community for all.  Mirroring the terror that befell the residents of the West Georgia Correctional Facility, now overrun by savage walkers, the experience will send guests fleeing from the fallen prison into unknown territory as they stage a desperate battle for survival against flesh-eating walkers and ruthless humans.

The engrossing television series will seep into other parts of Universal’s backlot with predatory walkers prowling the secluded wooded areas of the movie studio. “Terror Tram:  Invaded by the Walking Dead” will take guests down the daunting path to Terminus, interspersed with landmarks and walkers from Season 4, including the “burned moonshine cabin,” “charred walkers” and “mud walkers.”

Filmmaker Robert Rodriguez’s cult film and El Rey network’s acclaimed supernatural TV series, “From Dusk Till Dawn,” will debut at this year’s event in a new maze designed to thrust guests into its deviant world where they will encounter sordid mythological creatures known as “Culebras,” serpent-like vampires who have tormented the Earth for centuries.

Celebrated Grammy® Award-winning musician, SLASH, hailed as one of the 10 best electric guitar players of all time by Time magazine, is joining forces with Universal Studios Hollywood to compose the first-ever original score for the theme park’s hypnotizing new 3D maze, “Clowns 3D Music by SLASH.”

Other marquee mazes will include, “Dracula Untold:  Reign of Blood,” a terrifying new haunted attraction based on Universal Pictures’ upcoming epic action-adventure; “AVP: Alien vs. Predator,” bringing together the most deadly species spawned from two blockbuster films; “An American Werewolf in London,” inspired by Universal Pictures’ Academy Award®-winning film, and “Face Off:  In the Flesh,” featuring gruesome characters from Syfy’s hit TV series.

A series of unnerving scare zones will also infiltrate “Halloween Horror Nights,” terrorizing guests as they navigate the darkness from one terrifying maze to another, beginning with “The Purge:  Anarchy,” inspired by Universal Pictures’ disturbing blockbuster thriller. “The Walking Dead: Welcome to Terminus” will awaken swarms of predatory walkers in a gruesome scare zone situated adjacent to the new “The Walking Dead” maze.

Additional scare zones will include, “Mask-a-Raid,” featuring hordes of blood thirsty cannibals masquerading as French aristocrats; “Dark Christmas,” a Pagan-themed area where demonic creatures hunt disobedient children and drag them to hell; and “Skullz,” based on the Native American legend of Wendigo, a malevolent supernatural half-beast monster with an insatiable appetite for human flesh.

As a complement to the nighttime event, Universal’s most popular rides and attractions will also be open to guests, including” Transformers:  The Ride-3D,” “Jurassic Park—In the Dark,” “The Simpsons Ride” and “Revenge of the Mummy—The Ride.”

Updates on “Halloween Horror Nights” at Universal Studios Hollywood are available online at HalloweenHorrorNights.com/Hollywood and on Facebook at: “Halloween Horror Nights – Hollywood,” on Instagram at @HorrorNights and Twitter at @HorrorNights as Creative Director John Murdy reveals a running chronicle of exclusive information. Watch videos on Halloween Horror Nights YouTube and join the conversation using #UniversalHHN.

Halloween Horror Nights” dates are as follows: September 19, 20, 26, 27, October 3, 4, 5, 10, 11, 12, 16, 17, 18, 19, 23, 24, 25, 26, 30, 31, and November 1, 2, 2014.

Universal Studios Hollywood, The Entertainment Capital of L.A., includes a full-day, movie-based theme park and Studio Tour; the Universal CityWalk entertainment, shopping and dining complex, the Universal CityWalk Cinemas and the “5 Towers” state-of-the-art outdoor concert venue.  World-class rides and attractions include the all new 3D Ultra-HD movie motion-simulator adventure, “Despicable Me Minion Mayhem” and “Super Silly Fun Land,” the intense, award-winning ride, “King Kong 360 3D” on the famed behind-the-scenes Studio Tour, the critically-acclaimed mega-attraction, “Transformers™:  The Ride-3D,” “The Simpsons RideTM,” “Revenge of the MummySM—The Ride” and “Jurassic Park® —The Ride.”

Ghost Adventures Season 10 Details

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CHEVY CHASE, MD (August 19, 2014) – Get ready to lockdown your October. Zak Bagans, Nick Groff and Aaron Goodwin – the seasoned experts who have become synonymous with paranormal investigations – return for a brand-new season of Travel Channel’s “Ghost Adventures” on Saturday, October 4 at 9:00 p.m. ET/PT. This season launches with lockdown investigations in five iconic locations airing throughout the month of October, including a two-hour Halloween special which investigates the ancient Celtic demons that make up the country’s haunted Halloween history. Season ten is comprised of thirteen hour-long episodes and one two-hour special.

“We’re going big this season,” said Zak Bagans, lead investigator. “From the massive Queen Mary ship in California to Ireland’s Leap Castle and Mexico’s Island of the Dolls, each location is embedded with layers of paranormal activity to explore. As Nick, Aaron and I dig deeper to capture compelling evidence, we’re instituting a variety of new investigation tactics, experiments and equipment.”

In the season premiere, the investigative trio climb aboard the legendary ocean liner Queen Mary, now permanently docked in Long Beach, Calif. and considered to be one of the most haunted places in the world. Not long after the ship’s maiden voyage in 1936, it was put into military service. Tragedy surrounded the ship – nicknamed the “Gray Ghost” – until 1967 when it dropped anchor for good and became a hotel, still in operation today. Weighing more than 81,000 tons and over three football fields in length, the Queen Mary’s haunted history is as large and looming as the ship itself. With reports of multiple apparitions and voices – including that of a former crewman and little girl – the trio prepares for a powerful investigation. They first conduct a séance to channel the spirit of world renowned psychic and paranormal pioneer Peter James, who used the ship as basecamp for his studies and captured EVPs (electronic voice phenomena) of the little girl named “Jackie.”  Inviting EVP specialist Debbie Constantino on the lockdown, the team splits up to investigate the massive ship and are immediately confronted with disembodied voices, intelligent responses, light anomalies and a figure that will give chills to even the greatest of skeptics.

Additional locations featured this season include:

  • Lemp Mansion (St. Louis, Mo.) – Saturday, October 11 at 9:00 p.m. ET/PT

Lemp Mansion has been voted one of the top ten most haunted locations in America.  This house holds the ghosts of a dynastic family whose members went from rags to riches to madness and horrible death.

  • Zozo Demon (Oklahoma City, Okla.) – Saturday, October 18 at 9:00 p.m. ET/PT

Darren Evens claims a terrifying demon named “Zozo” entered his life through a Ouija board at his Hudson Avenue home in Oklahoma City. Seemingly a global phenomenon, “Zozo” has made Evens life so unbearable that he fled the home and hasn’t been back since.

  • Island of the Dolls (Xochimico, Mexico)– Saturday, October 25 at 9:00 p.m. ET/PT

Near the dark and creepy canals of Xochimico, Mexico sits what might be the world’s strangest and scariest tourist attraction: the Island of the Dolls (Isla de las Munecas), also home to a sinister – and haunted – mystery.

  • Ireland: Celtic Demons – Leap Castle, Hell Fire Club, Loftus Hall (Ireland) –

Friday, October 31 at 9:00 p.m. ET/PT (Two-Hour Halloween Special)

The roots of Halloween date back to 500 B.C. in the world’s Celtic region. Rich with haunted history, Ireland’s Leap Castle, Hell Fire Club and Loftus Hall are still believed to be infested by vengeful ghosts, banshees and other satanic elements.

“Ghost Adventures” is produced by My Tupelo Entertainment for Travel Channel.  For My Tupelo, the executive producers are Michael Yudin, Joe Townley, Zak Bagans and Nick Groff.  For Travel Channel, the executive producer is Daniel A. Schwartz.

STEP INSIDE THE “GHOST ADVENTURES FAN LAIR” ON TRAVELCHANNEL.COM

Get more “Ghost Adventures” at TravelChannel.com (www.travelchannel.com/tv-shows/ghost-adventures). The “Ghost Adventures Fan Lair” returns September 26th – interact with fellow fans, explore fan photos on the ‘haunted’ Instagram wall, catch up on the latest “Ghost Adventures” chatter via a Facebook and Twitter stream, and more.  On Friday, October 31, TravelChannel.com will host a Google Hangout with Aaron Goodwin and Jeff Belanger (“Ghost Adventures” researcher, author and paranormal expert) immediately following the two-hour Halloween special. Additional web elements includes video extras from each episode, photos, video blogs, travel guides for each location – including Ireland’s iconic and haunted locations, the most haunted places in the world, a ‘Which GA Guy Are You?’ quiz, full length episodes and more. Check out “Ghost Adventures” on Tumblr and Facebook and follow@GhostAdventures and #GhostAdventures on Twitter for more exclusive updates and content.

TRAVEL CHANNEL (http://www.travelchannel.com) is a multiplatform travel lifestyle brand with the core mission of providing inspiring and compelling programming that takes viewers beyond their everyday destinations, making the unfamiliar familiar, whether it’s around the world or around the block.  A dual feed network that is also available in HD, Travel Channel is the world’s leading travel media brand, and is available in over 94 million U.S. cable homes.  Owned and operated by Scripps Networks Interactive (NYSE: SNI), Travel Channel has offices in Chevy Chase, MD, and New York, NY.  Scripps Networks Interactive (NYSE: SNI) also owns and operates HGTV, DIY Network, Food Network, Cooking Channel and Great American Country.

Razer Announces BlackWidow Ultimate Stealth CLG Edition

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CARLSBAD, Calif. – Razer™, a world leader in connected devices and software for gamers, along with Counter Logic Gaming (CLG), a longtime eSports partner and premier North American organization, announced the launch of the new Counter Logic Gaming Razer BlackWidow Ultimate Stealth keyboard.

The CLG BlackWidow Ultimate Stealth gaming keyboard continues to give CLG players and fans a customized gaming setup. Late last year, Razer unveiled a limited edition CLG version of its best-selling DeathAdder mouse in the team’s iconic black and white colors. The new keyboard is wrapped in a familiar finish. The team’s logo is imprinted onto a unique two-tone black and white body and the keys are illuminated in CLG’s white coloring.

“CLG is one of the driving forces behind the explosive growth of professional gaming in North America and the world,” says Min-Liang Tan, Razer co-founder and CEO. “The new CLG BlackWidow Ultimate Stealth keyboard features the only unobtrusive mechanical switch that was specifically designed for gaming.”

While traditional mechanical switches were originally designed for typing, the all-new Razer Mechanical Switches have been designed and engineered from the ground up for gaming. After extensive research, Razer’s multi-award winning engineers identified the optimal actuation distance for a gaming switch to a fraction of a millimeter and reduced the distance between the actuation and reset point by almost half to allow for faster, more precise gaming commands when compared to standard mechanical switches. Furthermore, the all-new Razer Mechanical Switches are made using an ultra-precise manufacturing technique that, along with gold plated contact points, result in a projected lifespan of up to 60 million key strokes.

These switches were tested extensively by the world’s most demanding eSports athletes from Team Razer, including CLG pros, who validated the new Razer Mechanical Switch in some of the most intense professional gaming tournaments.

“We’re really happy to be working with Razer, a company that pioneered the gaming peripheral category, on our custom-branded gear for our players and fans,” says George “HotshotGG” Georgallidis, CLG co-founder and President. “We’re proud to extend our ongoing partnership that will result in giving our players and fans the best gaming gear on the planet.”

Razer made history with eSports legends since the early days of eSports and has been integral to the growth and development of the competitive electronic gaming generally. The brand’s work has leading the way in partnerships, business development and product evaluation in the gaming industry. For more information on Team Razer and its elite eSports athletes, visit http://www.razerzone.com/team

Razer’s reputation in the gaming space has led to licensed products along the lines of CLG’s range of peripherals. Game publishers and eSports organizations alike are using Razer’s award-winning technology. For more information, check outhttp://www.razerzone.com/licensed-and-team-peripherals.

Price:  USA: $149.99/EUR: €149.99

Availability: Immediate

Product features:

  •  Razer™ Mechanical Switches with 45 g actuation force
  •  Up to 60 million keystroke life span
  •  Individually backlit keys
  •  10 key roll-over anti-ghosting
  •  Fully programmable keys with on-the-fly macro recording
  •  5 additional dedicated macro keys
  •  Gaming mode option
  •  Audio-out / mic-in jacks
  •  USB pass–through
  •  1000 Hz Ultrapolling
  •  Razer Synapse enabled
  •  Braided fiber cable
  •  Approximate size: 475 mm / 18.72 in.

Warframe Archwing Teaser Video

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August 18, 2014 — Taking Warframe’s high-energy, skilled ninja battles into the depths of Space, Archwing – an entirely new Warframe game mode –  is coming in Update 15!

This huge addition to the game was announced during TennoLive 2014: Gamescom – Warframe’s first live version of the wildly popular Devstream. An energetic audience of 200 of the game’s most devoted players along with more than 14,000 players viewing the livestream from home watched as their favorite Warframe Developers interacted with fans, celebrated their community and offered major reveals to the game.

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Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor Season Pass Unveiled

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August 18, 2014 — Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment (WBIE) and Monolith Productions today revealed the Season Pass for the upcoming action game, Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor, showcasing exclusive content that will be available at participating retailers.

The Season Pass includes:

  • Exclusive ‘Guardians of the Flaming Eye’ Orc Warband mission
    • Players will face Sauron’s elite Defenders before the Black Gate and earn the Rising Flame rune
  • Early access to the ‘Trials of War’ challenge series
    • Players will test their skills against select legions of Sauron’s forces in this series of challenge modes and build their legend as gamers post their best score on the Challenge Leaderboard
  • All new story missions with hours of gameplay
    • Lord of the Hunt – Hunt the wild beasts of Mordor as players discover hidden lairs, earn unique runes and face off against powerful monsters
    • The Bright Lord – Play as Celebrimbor, the great Elven smith of the Second Age, and battle against Sauron and the might of his forces
  • Access to future content
    • Including runes, skins and additional future add-on content.

Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor delivers a dynamic game environment where the player orchestrates their personal plan of vengeance as they bend Mordor to their will. The game begins on the night of Sauron’s return to Mordor, as his Black Captains brutally execute the Rangers of the Black Gate. Players become Talion, a ranger who loses his family and everything he holds dear, only to be returned from death by a mysterious Spirit of vengeance. Based on the player’s actions with the in-game Nemesis System, every enemy encountered is distinct and can evolve to become a personal archenemy through the course of the game.  As Talion’s personal vendetta unfolds, players uncover the mystery of the Spirit that compels him, discover the origin of the Rings of Power and confront the ultimate nemesis.

For the latest game updates, like Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/ShadowofMordor and follow the game on Twitter at https://twitter.com/middleearthgame.

LA Haunted Hayride 2014 Details Revealed

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(Los Angeles, CA – August 18, 2014) Located in Griffith Park’s Old Zoo area, the Los Angeles Haunted Hayride will become a portal to the planet’s deepest and most legendary rift, The Underworld. Larger than life portrayals of the seven deadly sins and their consequences will “echo from the rift” and come out to play in one of the most paranormally active sites in all of California. Celebrating its sixth season, Los Angeles Haunted Hayride boasts NEW experiences including two Apocalyptic-themed mazes (“House of the Horsemen” and “Seven Sins Sideshow”), a 40-foot long Leviathan, an interactive theatre production (“Theatre Macabre”), the world-renowned Street Drum Corps (“Blood Drums”), and the FIRST sway polers to the United States. “Each year is a challenge to develop something completely unique that we know our attendees haven’t seen before…a challenge to out-do ourselves,” explains Melissa Carbone, CEO of Ten Thirty One Productions. “This year, we’re going to dizzy our attendees with mind blowing content that has never existed in this space by tapping techniques and skill sets that we had to import from other countries because they do not exist in the U.S. Even my jaw is to the ground!”

On October 9th, Los Angeles Haunted Hayride hosts its annual “Black Carpet Premiere Night” for select press, sponsors, and celebrities. Past celebrity attendees include Katy Perry, Demi Lovato, Jillian Michaels, Nikki Reed, Megan Fox, Sarah Hyland, Lucy Hale, Chris Colfer, Chord Overstreet, Stephanie Pratt, David Beckham, Emmy Rossum, Sarah Silverman, Ryan Gosling, Kristin Ritter, Giles Nissan and more.

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In this year’s Purgatory, a haunted village that entertains guests while they wait in line, new experiences include:

  • “House of the Horsemen” is approximately a 15-minute experience sending guests face to face with the four Horsemen of The Apocalypse, embodying Pestilence, War, Famine, and Death.
  • “Seven Sins Sideshow” is a maze where the most depraved and deadly lurk from flesh and furniture melting into one, a human pig-machine vomiting riches from its muzzle, to even a race of carnivorous celestial Entities thriving on the fat from human hosts.

The Purgatory main stage will be reintroduced as “Theatre Macabre,” where the audience members become the stars. This audience participation, interactive theatre features famous scenes from iconic horror films such as The Lost Boys, Exorcist, Carrie, Psycho and more.

Also new to Purgatory this year, are the world-renowned Street Drum Corps. Instead of it raining blood last year, Street Drum Corps will be splashing guests with their high energy, drum and percussion show. Returning to Purgatory are the crowd favorites “In-Between Dark Maze”, a black labyrinth that sends patrons into the darkness with nothing but a low voltage lantern, and “Death Row,” an interactive room that allows guests an up close and personal look at devices of death used throughout history. Also returning is the Scary- Go-Round, House Of Mirrors, Jack’s Carving Shack, Death Row, Psychics, Freak Shows, Demonic Stilt Walkers, and more.

Los Angeles Haunted Hayride will be open from October 3rd –31st

General Admission is $30, All Attraction Pass is $42, and VIP pass is $58 (allowing guests to surpass any line).

All Attractions Pass and VIP Pass allows access to “House of The Horsemen” and “Seven Sins Sideshow.” Each purchase supports the LA Parks Foundation, preserving parks for the people of Los Angeles. Los Angeles Haunted Hayride is a Fur Free Attraction; there is plenty of blood and guts on the ride!

Visit www.losangeleshauntedhayride.com for complete details.