Village Gamer

Burnaby – EA Sports™ is developing one of the most popular and culturally influential arcade basketball games ever made — NBA JAM — for the Nintendo Wii™. EA Sports NBA JAM revives the classic franchise with vintage NBA JAM gameplay, and all-new features that deliver a fresh new take on the game. Featuring the sights and sounds that fans of the franchise will instantly recognize, EA SPORTS NBA JAM mixes the old school with the new, to deliver a one-of-a-kind sports presentation on the Wii. Not yet rated by the ESRB, NBA JAM is scheduled for a 2010 release.

“NBA JAM is one of the most recognizable franchises in videogame history,” said Peter Moore, President, EA Sports. “Diehard fans of the original game have been asking for a remake for more than a decade. We’re very excited to give them their wish this year with the return of this iconic franchise.”

Featuring gameplay that is true to the original, NBA JAM will have players spinning with ankle breaking moves to the basket and on the way to high-flying, backboard-smashing dunks. In addition to the classic experience, EA Sports NBA JAM will also introduce new game modes, characters and gameplay depth.

NBA JAM brought an all-new visual style to the sports videogame genre when it debuted in 1993. Now, the new EA Sports NBA JAM re-defines the visuals for a sports game yet again by bringing true-to-life body types, updated physics, and visible player emotion to the over- the – top experience.

Vancouver – As announced last week on Village Gamer, Deep Fried Entertainment’s WiiWare title ShadowPlay is officially available for download for the Wii today.  Let your imagination run wild when light meets everyday objects to create fascinating shadows. Play and experiment, make a monster out of a pineapple, a dolphin out of a banana – the only limit is your imagination. ShadowPlay challenges players by transforming shadows into more than 100 exciting, unique puzzles. As more challenging puzzles are unlocked, players will have to find more creative ways to solve problems. You will never look at a slice of pizza the same way again! Winning a round will allow players to advance to the next level as well as score another item to use in the Free Play Mode, where you can unleash your imagination and create your own shadow art. Family and friends can also jump in to help tackle a puzzle at any time using Local Co-op Mode. ShadowPlay will provide tons of brain-racking fun for 1 or 2 players of all ages for 800 Wii points. Rated E by the ESRB.

Gormley – Digital Leisure’s also got a new title available for download today. Word Searcher for DSi contains fun words from multiple categories including anatomy, world cities and U.S. presidents. Packed with a huge assortment of subjects to choose from, there’s sure to be a puzzle anyone will enjoy. Help improve your vocabulary, memory and problem-solving skills with these challenging puzzles. Keep track of, and try to beat, your own play-through times again and again as words are scrambled every time you play. Get your thinking cap on and conquer all 100 puzzles today. Word Searcher is rated E by the ESRB and costs 500 DSi points.

Toronto – Independent game studio Little Guy Games has released Battle Blasters for the iPhone and iPod Touch. Battle Blasters is an original, arcade style, 1-on-1 fighting game where the guns are big and the battles are fierce.

It’s the year 3042 and the ultimate form of entertainment is the Battle Blasters tournament which pits the world’s best fighters against each other in gun-blasting death matches. Take control of a roster of futuristic combatants trained in the art of armed conflict. To succeed you will need to determine your opponent’s fighting style, avoid their attacks and unleash your own devastating specials and combos.

Built with original artwork, unique character designs, and live recorded audio, Battle Blasters includes several gameplay modes and features:

• Campaign Mode – Battle your way through fearsome opponents across three difficulty levels. Unlock Supreme difficulty to compete against the elite Battle Blasters fighters.
• Multiplayer – Engage your friends in intense 1-on-1 battles on the same device
• Quickplay – Hone your skills against any fighter in the Battle Blaster tournament
• Facebook Leaderboards – Post your high scores to Facebook Leaderboards to compete against your friends and other Battle Blasters fighters across the world!

Available now in iTunes App Store for $2.99 USD, Battle Blasters is an intense shooting/fighting experience for your iPhone or iPod Touch. It features six characters, each with their own unique fighting style, abilities, and special weapons. Whether human, robot, alien, or something in between, in Battle Blasters the only language is gunshots and the only currency is plasma and lasers.