Alien Syndrome Coming To Wii, PSP

No, this is not a repost. It appears that another one of Sega´s "classic" intellectual properties is making its way to the Wii and the PSP. Alien Syndrome, which saw an arcade release in 1987 on the venerable System 16 platform, was a simple top-down multiplayer shooter with a clear Aliens (the movie) inspiration.

It seems that Sega´s Alien Syndrome, despite being announced the same day as Sega being granted rights to the Aliens film license, is an independent project, with no basis on the 20th Century Fox property. Confusing!

Game development for the action-RPG is being helmed by Totally Games, responsible for games in the X-Wing and Tie Fighter series, as well as, more recently, Star Trek Bridge Commander and Secret Weapons Over Normandy. I anxiously await screens, hoping that the candy-colored, 80s pastel palette will carry over.

Hit the jump for the full release. Michael McWhertor

Aliens Going Next-Gen [Kotaku]

SEGA of America, Inc. and SEGA Europe, Ltd. today announced they will be releasing Alien Syndrome, a fast-paced action-RPG set in a stunningly imaginative sci-fi universe. Developed by Totally Games, Alien Syndrome will launch simultaneously for the Nintendo Wii console and PSP system in summer 2007. Alien Syndrome offers two fast-paced action-RPG modes - the dramatic and engaging single-player campaign, plus a hugely re-playable co-op multiplayer mode where up to four players can delve into the daring quest. Derived from the classic SEGA IP, Alien Syndrome for the Wii and PSP plunges players into its easy to pick up and play action-RPG gameplay, while offering depth and a wealth of features and missions to challenge all gamers.

Alien Syndrome puts players in control of the strong and enigmatic heroine - Earth Command Trooper Aileen Harding - as she battles through a wide variety of environments including onboard infested spaceships and bizarre alien planets, taking on a mixture of fearsome aliens and colossal bosses. Players can choose from a wide selection of character specialties and skills to hone their character before embarking upon their sci-fi adventure. As they progress through the engrossing campaign, protected by different types of armour and using a variety of melee and ranged weaponry, players can improve their heroine´s statistics and discover powerful new abilities.

"Alien Syndrome is a great update of a classic franchise that has been designed to fit perfectly onto both the innovative Wii and the portable PSP," said Matt Woodley, Creative Director, SEGA Publishing Europe Ltd. "Alien Syndrome is the only fast-paced, sci-fi action -RPG for the Wii and PSP and brilliantly blends arcade-style shooter gameplay with elements from RPGs."

"Completely re-designed from the ground up for the PSP and the Wii, this new Alien Syndrome offers a refreshing blast-athon on a venerable classic," said Larry Holland, President and Creative Director of Totally Games. "As well, it has allowed us to exercise our science fiction chops to the fullest to create a totally involving futuristic action-RPG game experience."

Alien Syndrome offers 20 different weapons to use, ranging from flamethrowers, quad-barrelled lasers, nanobot swarms that dissolve enemies and incendiary grenades that unleash fire geysers from the ground. Each weapon offers different advantages and disadvantages, dependent upon how it is used and which speciality the player has chosen to adopt. With the sheer variety of weapons and abilities available to players, any number of combat strategies can be used to defeat hordes of more than 100 different alien enemies.

Alien Syndrome on the Wii will utilise the Wii remote´s unique gyroscopic feature by enabling players a full range of motion when slashing through enemies, unloading devastation on bosses, or running and gunning through hallways. Players will also be able to access various new game modes and mechanisms. These extra features include using the Wii controllers to craft new items, to enhance existing items and character abilities and to hack into computer systems.

For gamers on the go, Alien Syndrome on the PSP is wi-fi enabled so that up to four players can embark upon playing cooperatively through the alien infested levels in various multiplayer modes.

Alien Syndrome is developed by Totally Games and will be available for the Wii and PSP system in summer 2007.

Alienalien syndromeSegatotally gamesWii [SHOW]

MLB The Show Coming to PS3 This Spring

Sony today confirmed that MLB 07 The SHow will be hitting the Playstation 2, Playstation Portable and Playstation 3 in spring 2007.

New features include a Road to The Show mode, which will allow gamers to create a rookie and try to play him up through the ranks to the Big Leagues, a new Adaptive Pitching Intelligence, a Pitch Command System, an Umpire Personalities feature. Whoa, whoa, whoa, umpires don´t have personalities. That´s crazy talk.

The game will also include Online League Play, letting gamers set up leagues with up to 30 teams and run the league with full statistics, point benefits and full customization.

"In 2006, the MLB franchise was the best-selling baseball videogame on the market across all gaming platforms, and dominated the PlayStation platforms. This year, MLB 07 The Show looks to continue its reign as the most valuable player in the category by delivering unsurpassed realism," said Scott Rohde, director, sports product development, SCEA. "We are committed to continually looking for ways to add new and improved gameplay features in order to provide fans with the closest experience to actually playing in the Big Leagues."

Hit the jump for the full release and all of the details. Brian Crecente

FOSTER CITY, Calif., Dec. 12 /PRNewswire/ -- Sony Computer Entertainment
America Inc. (SCEA) officially announced today that MLB 07 The Show(TM) will
be available in Spring 2007, exclusively for the PLAYSTATION(R)3 (PS3(TM))
computer entertainment system, PlayStation(R)2 computer entertainment system
and PSP(R) (PlayStation(R)Portable) handheld entertainment system. Building on
the history of the MLB(R) franchise, as the longest running officially
licensed baseball videogame on the PlayStation(R) platforms and already widely
considered the most authentic baseball videogame available, MLB 07 The Show is
set to deliver all-new features and continue its reign as the market leader.
As the only first party videogame officially licensed by Major League
Baseball Properties (MLBP), Major League Baseball Advanced Media (MLBAM) and
the Major League Baseball Players Association (MLBPA), MLB 07 The Show will
unveil new core features across all three PlayStation platforms. The
innovative Road to The Show mode will enable fans to play solely as a
custom-created rookie on both offense and defense while attempting to rise
through the ranks and make a starting line-up in the Big Leagues.
Adding to its already robust online feature set, the MLB franchise will
now include Online League Play, which gives gamers the ability to set up
leagues with up to 30 teams, complete statistical tracking, point benefits and
full customization, while the My Sliders feature allows users to create their
perfect game settings and upload them to the MLB 07 The Show server for others
to try out.
For fans attempting to master the timeless art of pitching, MLB 07 The
Show introduces some innovative new features such as Adaptive Pitching
Intelligence (API), which allows users to either shake off the catcher, or
trust the calls he makes which are based on batter tendencies and the
pitcher´s strengths. Additionally, the Pitch Command System (PCS) delivers
authenticity and strategy to pitch selection by offering players a
predetermined pitch comfort level based on a best to worst pitch scenario.
Providing an even more authentic feel to the game, the new Umpire
Personalities feature provides a new challenge to pitchers as each umpire has
their own version of the strike zone, unique tendencies and animations.
"In 2006, the MLB franchise was the best-selling baseball videogame on the
market across all gaming platforms, and dominated the PlayStation platforms.
This year, MLB 07 The Show looks to continue its reign as the most valuable
player in the category by delivering unsurpassed realism," said Scott Rohde,
director, sports product development, SCEA. "We are committed to continually
looking for ways to add new and improved gameplay features in order to provide
fans with the closest experience to actually playing in the Big Leagues."
As developers begin to harness the power and potential found within PS3,
MLB 07 The Show showcases its abilities with additional innovative features
such as crowd interaction, which can be seen like never before with a vast
array of new ambient elements including fans reaching for foul balls, the
seventh inning stretch, the wave, standing ovations and much more. Also
making the game more realistic, gamers will now be able to detail the
different pitch grips and arm angles that a pitcher has when throwing each
pitch. Scouting these details in Replay Mode shows players what to look for in
release point and pitch arm angle from 15 different pitches. These new
subtleties deliver an unrivaled virtual experience on PS3.
Returning key features for the MLB franchise include the popular Career
and Season Modes, Career Spotlight and Exhibition Mode. In addition, MLB 07
The Show provides fans with the features they expect in an unrivaled
simulation, such as advanced batting and base running controls, interactive
hot and cold zones, player-scaled strike zones, release point pitching and the
most comprehensive commentary ever produced for a sports video game, featuring
the three-man booth of Rex Huddler, Matt Vasgerian and Dave Campbell.
Along with all the key franchise features, returning gameplay favorites
for PlayStation 2 include Rivalry Mode, which allows fans to set-up, track and
maintain heated rivalries, King of the Diamond Mode, the classic playground
duel where a pitcher and batter from opposing teams will square off
head-to-head, Franchise mode, where players take control of the entire team,
the Home Run Derby and EyeToy(TM) functionality. MLB 07 The Show for the PSP
system continues to be a fan favorite with its core features and ability to
play anytime, anywhere, on the go. Plus, sports fanatics can utilize the PSP
system´s online news service to get the latest MLB news feeds online or save
them to the Memory Stick Duo(TM) and review them offline at their convenience.
The independent Entertainment Software Rating Board (ESRB) rating for MLB
07 The Show is "RP" for "Rating Pending." For more information about the ESRB
visit www.esrb.org .

Baseballmlb 07 the showPs2PS3PSPSports [SHOW]

Red 5 Studios Raises $18.5 Million

It can be very difficult for a fledgling game developer to earn the capital needed to survive, unless of course your company is made up of key members of the World of Warcraft team. Then you can pretty much fill out the check yourself. Case in point, Red 5 Studios today announced that they´ve raised $18.5 million in funding to further their goal of becoming the leading MMO developer in the world. Benchmark Capital and Sierra Ventures were prime contributors.

"Red 5 is a creative mecca for the world´s best game development talent to realize their own vision," said Mark Kern, president and CEO of Red 5 Studios. "With the financial backing and operational advice of Benchmark and Sierra, our uniquely talented team will have the resources to create the most exciting massively multiplayer titles for a worldwide audience."

Makes sense. Finance companies would be daft to ignore a team that created one of the most played and paid for video game on the planet. No matter how you feel about the game you can´t argue the numbers.

Full press release follows.

RED 5 STUDIOS GROWS WITH $18.5 MILLION FROM
BENCHMARK CAPITAL AND SIERRA VENTURES

Top-Tier Venture Capital Firms Serve as Series A Co-leads Financing Independent Massively Multiplayer Online Gaming Studio

ALISO VIEJO, CA - DECEMBER 12, 2006 - Red 5 Studios, an independent online game development studio made up of key talent behind Blizzard Entertainment(R)´s hit World of Warcraft(R), announced today it has raised additional capital to further its growth toward becoming the leading studio for creative, original MMO games for the global mass market. Benchmark Capital and Sierra Ventures co-led the Series-A round raising $18.5 million in funding.

"Red 5 is a creative mecca for the world´s best game development talent to realize their own vision," said Mark Kern, president and CEO of Red 5 Studios. "With the financial backing and operational advice of Benchmark and Sierra, our uniquely talented team will have the resources to create the most exciting massively multiplayer titles for a worldwide audience."

Benchmark Capital has invested in dozens of successful consumer-technology companies, including Second Life(TM), mobile entertainment leader JAMDAT, and eBay. Sierra focuses on investments across all areas of the information technology sector, and works with entrepreneurs and management teams to originate and build new companies into large, profitable businesses.

"Historically, the winners in the gaming space have been publishers rather than independent studios. However, World of Warcraft(R) is no ordinary game title and Red 5 is no ordinary team," said Bill Gurley, general partner, Benchmark Capital. "With the track record, talent and vision behind Red 5, it is positioned to become a unique creative powerhouse in the online games space."

"Sierra invests in world-changing ideas, and we believe that MMOs are poised to become a dominant form of entertainment on a global scale. Red 5 Studios´ mission is aligned perfectly with our goals of building the premiere independent development studio in the online gaming market," said Jeff Loomans, partner, Sierra Ventures. "Future MMOs need to combine great gameplay and social networking - giving players the ability to reach beyond borders both virtually and globally, and Red 5 Studios is designing the company and its games around this premise from the beginning."

Red 5 Studios´ first title is already under development; a massively multiplayer online (MMO) game financed and distributed globally by Webzen.

About Red 5 Studios

Founded in September 2005 by key members behind Blizzard Entertainment(R)´s World of WarCraft(R), including Team Lead Mark Kern, Art Director William Petras, and co-founder of Blizzard Korea Taewon Yun, Red 5 Studios is dedicated to bringing together millions of gamers across the world by creating immersive worlds, intriguing stories and compelling characters.

About Benchmark Capital

Benchmark Capital, a leading international venture capital firm, was founded in 1995 to help talented entrepreneurs with original ideas build successful technology companies. Benchmark´s general partners take a team-oriented, labor-intensive approach to venture investing to deliver a superior level of service to the firm´s portfolio companies. Benchmark´s portfolio includes high-profile start-ups like Infinera, MySQL, OpenTable, Tellme, Zillow, Yelp, and Linden Lab´s Second Life, and franchise companies such as eBay, Juniper Networks and Red Hat. Managing more than $3.5 billion in committed venture capital, Benchmark has offices in Silicon Valley, Europe and Israel. For more information on Benchmark Capital, visit its website at www.benchmark.com.

About Sierra Ventures

Sierra Ventures, founded in 1982, is a privately held venture capital firm focused on investments across all areas of the Information Technology sector from semiconductors to enterprise software. Sierra Ventures has managed eight venture capital partnerships and currently has more than $1 billion of capital under management. Some of the firm´s investments include Combinet (acquired by Cisco), StrataCom (acquired by Cisco), ConvergeNet (acquired by Dell), Quinta (acquired by Seagate), Intuit (INTU), OnLink (acquired by Siebel), Healtheon (merged with WebMD), AmeriGroup (AGP), Micromuse (MUSE), Active Software (acquired by WebMethods), Centex (acquired by WorldCom), and Interact Commerce (acquired by Sage).

# # #

I´ve got high hopes for Red 5, though over the past two years I´ve watched many MMO games and companies come and go without making a dent in WoW´s subscriber base. If any one can do it, these are the folks. They made World of Warcraft...now can they break it? Michael Fahey

big moneyMmorpgred 5World of Warcraft [SHOW]

Botswana pitches for BPO business

(InfoWorld) - The South African nation of Botswana hopes to gain a share of the BPO (business process outsourcing) market by making a pitch for niche areas.

Botswana´s challenge is that competitors in Asia and Europe enjoy first-mover advantage, and are large enough to compete on cost, according to Moraki Mokgosana, business development executive of Botswana´s International Financial Services Centre, a government agency.

"We intend to aim our focus on the targeting of niche markets and achieving our growth through quality of service as opposed to the cost element," Mokgosana said."Our strengths lie mostly in BPO in the financial services sector."

Botswana took this approach after it commissioned Accenture to evaluate BPO opportunities. Historically, the economy of Botswana has, since independence, been driven by mining and to a lesser extent by agriculture. The country has been looking to diversify and achieve economic growth. It has identified the tourism and financial markets as alternative engines for economic growth.

Within the financial services sector, an opportunity for the development of the BPO and the call center industries were identified.

The Accenture report listed Botswana´s favorable legal and economic environment, good telecommunications infrastructure, and its small though skilled workforce as potential advantages.

Botswana has taken a double-pronged strategy toward building its BPO portfolio by developing local businesses and attracting companies to locate in the country.

A showpiece of Botswana´s efforts in the BPO sector is the privately owned Oseg Group. Oseg is one of the largest outsourcers in the country, focusing on services like accounts receivable. It also does telemarketing.

The country has rolled out copious incentives such as a guaranteed level of corporate tax until 2020 and exemptions from withholding taxes on interest, commercial royalties, consulting fees and dividends paid to nonresidents.

"Botswana can employ a phased approach starting with some ´low hanging fruit´ in the short term and culminating in more complex offerings in the longer term," Mokgosana said.

[SHOW]