Video Game releases for the week 2008

[dhilipkumar]

Video Game releases for the week of October 13, 2008



  SOCOM U.S. Navy SEALs: Confrontation(PS3) – It's finally here! The long awaited SOCOM title for the new generation has finally arrived and we're sure it's been worth the wait!
Rock Band 2 (PS3) – We're not sure why RB2 for the PS3 didn't drop the same week as the one for the Xbox 360, but nonetheless it's here.

FIFA Soccer 09 (Xbox 360, PS3, PS2) – EA Sports new soccer title is selling like hotcakes out in Europe, will it do as well here in the states?

Saints Row 2 (Xbox 360, PS3) – Fans may call the Saint's Row franchise a Grand Theft Auto copycat, but some of the game play and ideas make it just as good and sometimes even better than the Grand Theft Auto series. Don't sleep!

Dead Space (Xbox 360, PS3) – Just in time for Halloween, EA's sci-fi horror game Dead Space is finally here. Be prepared to lop an arm or leg or two.

Sam & Max: Season One (Wii) – The Sam & Max series is actually a series of games that was based off a comic book. They first launched as part of GameTap's download service, but now's it coming to the Wii.

Golden Axe: Beast Rider (Xbox 360, PS3) – Yes, this is a remake of the classic game from the 80's. But this time, you only play as the female lead that can control a variety of beasts as you try to battle the evil Death Adder and his army.

Avatar: The Last Airbender-Into the Inferno (Wii, DS) – Based off the successful animated series on Nickelodeon, Into the Inferno is based on the show's third and final season. It's a must have for any Avatar fan.

Blitz: The League II (Xbox 360, PS3) – Tired of Madden and the No Fun League? Blitz the League II returns with Lawrence Taylor, Jay Mohr, Frank Caliendo, and others to bring you the hard-hitting and sometimes too graphic violence of prison football.

Rock Revolution (Xbox 360, PS3, DS) – It's Konami's answer to Rock Band and Guitar Hero. Can it stand a chance?

BAJA 1000: Off Road Racing (Xbox 360, PS2, PS3, Wii) – Based off the off-road race that takes place in Baja, Mexico, this racer tries to give a realistic approach to the event.

Disney Sing It  (PS3, Xbox 360, PS2) – This karaoke title features all of your favorite songs from your favorite Disney shows like Camp Rock, Hannah Montana, Aly and AJ, the Jonas Brother and yes, High School Musical one and two.

[dhilipkumar]

US video game guru becomes sixth space tourist

BAIKONUR, Kazakhstan (AFP) - American millionaire Richard Garriott followed in his astronaut father's footsteps Sunday, blasting off aboard a Russian rocket to become the world's sixth space tourist.
Sealed inside the Soyuz TMA-13 capsule together with a Russian cosmonaut and a US astronaut, Garriott, a renowned video game developer, was catapulted towards the International Space Station (ISS) from the Baikonur base in the dusty steppes of Kazakhstan at 0701 GMT.

Several hundred observers were present at the launch site and they applauded as the rocket roared into the blue skies overhead from the pad where Yury Gagarin, the world's first man in space, was launched in 1961.

Within 10 minutes of the launch, controllers confirmed the spacecraft had entered its planned orbit. Champagne corks popped as family and friends of the crew celebrated the apparently successful start of the mission.

"I'm very happy for him," said Garriott's girlfriend, Kelly Miller, tears welling up in her eyes.

"It's one of the things he always wanted to do... I feel like it's well worth the opportunity."

Among those watching the launch was the female South Korean cosmonaut Yi So-Yeon, who went into space for a mission in April. She said she was "very moved."

"I don't know why, but I cried," she told AFP.

"Now Richard has become a real cosmonaut."

Four hours into the mission, controllers said everything was proceeding as planned, RIA Novosti news agency said.

"The crew feels normal and is in good shape," the report said.

The flight, which is costing Garriott 30 million dollars (22 million euros), was programmed to settle into orbit about nine minutes after take-off and reach the ISS at 0833 GMT on Tuesday.

Garriott, who now becomes the first American to follow a parent into space, hopes to be able to recoup the money he paid for the experience.

Unlike the five space tourists who came before him, Garriott views space as a family business.

His father is former US astronaut Owen Garriott, who in 1973 spent two months aboard Skylab, the first orbiting space station.

"I grew up in a family of astronauts and I always wanted to do what my father did," the 47-year-old said ahead of his long-awaited departure.

Owen Garriott, also present at his son's launch, seemed well pleased with his son.

"It's marvellous," the elder Garriot said after the rocket roared off the launch pad. "Very good."

Garriott finally got the chance to fulfill his childhood dream when Space Adventures, the US-based company that specialises in taking wealthy tourists into orbit, announced in September 2007 he would be its next space tourist.

"It is a goal I have been working on for 20 to 30 years," Garriott, who underwent a rigorous regime of medical examinations and months of training to be allowed aboard the flight, said in a pre-flight interview.

"At the age of 47, I still consider myself a fairly young man, and I believe I will continue to build new businesses which will allow me to continue my exploration of the world," said the British-born resident of Texas.

Aboard the ISS, he plans to perform several experiments on subjects including the effect of space travel on the immune system and the sleep characteristics of astronauts.

"I am trying to demonstrate with my flight ... that private participants can do business in space that returns revenues at similar scales to the cost," he told a press conference on Saturday.

"I am generating significant revenues through my activities ... that I believe will be increased in the future."

During his 10-day trip into space, Garriott is to be accompanied by Russian cosmonaut Yuri Lonchakov and US astronaut Michael Fincke. They will work on expanding the ISS so that it can accommodate six crew instead of the present three.

They will spend about six months in space replacing the existing crew, due to return to earth on October 24 with Garriott.

[dhilipkumar]

Boogeyman's Third

October 20, 2008 - On January 20, 2009, Sony Pictures Home Entertainment will release Boogeyman 3 (Unrated) on DVD. When college sophomore Sarah Morris witnesses the alleged suicide of her roommates, it sets into motion a series of horrific events that cause Sarah to fear the supernatural entity known as the Boogeyman. As she tries to convince the rest of her dorm that the Boogeyman does exist, the evil force grows stronger and her friends begin to pay the price. It will contain bonus materials and extra features, and the DVD will be available for the MSRP (Manufacturer's Suggested Retail Price) of $24.96.

The Boogeyman 3 DVD will feature the following bonus materials:

# Deleted Scenes
# "Creating the Boogeyman" Featurette
# "Deconstructing the Deaths" Featurette
# "Boogey in Bulgaria" Featurette

Box art is currently unavailable. Stay tuned to IGN DVD for more information about this and other upcoming releases!