LOS ANGELES — EA remains the fan-pleasing factory of gaming titles to entice both new and hardcore gamers alike. At this year’s E3, there weren’t any huge surprises, other than Crysis2 not sucking. (because, admit it, we all thought C1 totally did.)

I had the chance to demo a few games, and was escorted to “family games” before I got a chance to get my hands on the beef.

Some of the family-oriented games, like Monopoly and Hasbro Family Game Night 3, are right on cue for ages 4-444, with bold graphics and customizable characters based on your Mii or XBLA avatar so any member of the family can own their pwnage. A newer version of the classic Risk was on show as well.

One rising star in the all-ages genre is a new game by EA Bright Lights, the team responsible for the newest title in the Harry Potter series, Spare Parts. Part WALL-E -meets-Spyro, it will be one that kids play and awaken the inner-gamer in mom and dad. (Yes, I do want to play it; no- it has nothing to do with me being a girl. Shut it!) It may become the secret guilty-pleasure for many gamers. Who doesn’t like Robots? EA dubs this a “cooperative action adventure”, trending toward the online co-op capabilities that is becoming the norm these days in the gaming scene.

The Need for Speed franchise made a comeback with a return to it’s roots- a classic cop-chasing-bad guy game, complete with Lamborghini cop cars in Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit. The cars are typically unrealistically hard to handle, but what do you expect from a memorizable game? In the realm of graphic quality I’ll hand it to them, however. The cars are rockin’, and the hot rod shown at E3 to catch our attention was one hot tamale.

When the boys finally let me come to the yard, I have to admit, I totally got schooled in the Medal of Honor demo. I was just too distracted by how fast and smoothly the game rendered, a sign of a great engine, and well thought out gameplay. I was happy to sit back and watch the diehards go at it, and contribute to the death of an insurgent or two. Electronic Arts los Angeles is handling the single-player action, but DICE stepped it up for the online co-op. You die fast and hard, thanks to what DICE calls “faster bullets.” Remind me to thank them for my lesson in humility.

Crysis 2 is a vast improvement on the original, but I have to shame the developers in picking NYC as it’s location of destruction. As much as I love the idea of NYC as the futuristic dystopian gamer’s paradise, it is, perhaps, too soon to see iconic New York City fall to the ground in a blaze of alien-gutted glory. The gameplay is rich, thrilling and maybe this will be the redeeming title for the still neophitic development team of Crytek who didn’t quite walk the walk with Crysis the first time around. The big news with Crysis 2 is the expectation of 3D capabilities. The gameplay is engaging and frenetic, adding to the overall atmosphere of doom and destruction; AI placement has been done well, and those aforementioned icons of NYC are easily recognizable with a nice depth quality.

All titles will be released between the fall and holiday seasons. Family titles will be available for about $39.99.

Other titles expected for release include sports giants like Madden NFL 2011, FIFA 2011, NCAA Football, and NHL/NHL Slapshot. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hollows Pt 1 — which grew up with the apprentice sorcerer into something close to a third-person shooter — and the Sims3 round out the mid-range, with killer titles like Dead Space 2 and Bulletstorm rounding out the hardcore gamer genre, and are expected to be well received, leaving EA living up to its reputation as a powerhouse publisher.

Playing board games, surrounded by family and friends at the dinner table was a highlight of my youth. But for my (potential) kids, that dinner table might be the living room floor.

Electronic Arts and its EA Play Label, today announced Hasbro Game Night 3, the third installment of the digital board game series and one that will see popular titles Twister, LIFE, Clue, Mouse Trap and Yahtzee Hands Down, make their way to the digital world.

Family Game Night 3

Mr. Potato Head leads the cheers and reprises his role as “host and park guide,” and with Toy Story 3 looming on the horizon, the potato man has a lot on his figurative plate.

“This third installment in the successful HASBRO FAMILY GAME NIGHT video game series delivers another great lineup of time-tested favorite Hasbro game brands and uses online play to take the entertainment and competition to an entirely new level,” said Mark Blecher, Senior Vice President and General Manager of Digital Media and Gaming at Hasbro. “No longer will travel distance be a hurdle for families and friends to get together and have some fun.”

Up to four players can take part in each title and, for the first time, players can use their Miis and Avatars in the Wii and Xbox 360 versions respectively.

Hasbro Game Night 3 comes to Xbox 360, Wii and PlayStation 3 Fall, 2010.

Last year EA and Hasbro teamed up to release a Nerf blaster and light-gun style shooter for the Wii. The game was mostly a collection of shooting gallery type minigames, but it came packaged together with a Nerf blaster that doubled as a Wii blaster, meaning you could use it for other titles as well. This time around, EA Salt Lake has developed more of a light-gun adventure for kids, that’s a lot heavier on the action and has the kind of story that only a pre-teen could appreciate–given that’s the target audience though, that’s not such a bad thing.

I won’t ask why the evil enemy’s robots are capable of being shot down by foam darts and soft balls, but we’ll just use video game logic here to say that it works and you best not question why. Regardless of what they are using for ammo, the four friends team up to take down this evil-doer, and they pick up loads of blasters along the way, blasters that they can customize to their liking. You purchase upgrades with items you find scattered around levels and hiding inside your enemies, just waiting to burst out when you blow them up. This adds to the replay value significantly–light gun games like House of the Dead and Time Crisis suffer on occasion from not having enough incentive to replay them, but when you’re given a reason (like this spring’s House of the Dead: Overkill, with its achievement and upgrade systems) then you’ve got yourself a keeper, as playing through it again isn’t painful.

To add to that, you can also play with another person, even if they don’t have their own Nerf blaster. They can just use the Wii Remote (or another peripheral like the Wii Zapper or Nyko Perfect Shot) in order to play along–some areas are only available to you if you are playing co-op, so there’s good reason for Little Timmy to invite Little Billy over to blast some robots.

Outside of blasting everything in sight, the big hook for N-Strike Elite is the Red Reveal–there’s an attachment for the Nerf blaster that you look through at certain parts of the game, in order to reveal secret codes that you can use in various places. The places where you need Red Reveal could not be anymore obvious if they had signs with fingers pointing surrounding them, but it’s hard to read the text without the Red Reveal, and it is the sort of thing that your little pre-teen adventurer will eat up due to it’s undercover, secret agent mystique.

The one knock the game has is that it’s very non-violent, but that may also be a selling point to many parents who want their kids to be able to enjoy video games, but don’t exactly want them sawing off aliens heads with a chainsaw bayonet just yet. The kids don’t die; the game just sort of stops and you get the chance to restart from your last checkpoint. Foam darts and balls will also not be mistaken for bullets anytime soon; it’s not like they go inside the robots, they just sort of bounce off, but then again, that would happen if you turned and blasted your co-op buddy with the fully functional Nerf blaster you’re playing with anyways, so it makes sense.

The Nerf blaster is a better product than the Wii Zapper, though I would put it a step below the Nyko Perfect Shot; the grip on the handle is not long enough for comfort if you’ve got big hands, but otherwise it’s well-made and works perfectly for its intended Wii related purposes. Considering you’re getting it with a game without too much of a price hike, it’s not a bad accessory to have around for other games.

Blast Factor: Nerf N-Strike Elite made a great design change from the original, going for more of a light-gun adventure than an arena-based series of challenges. It makes for gameplay that immerses the player into the experience more, and with the loads of customization options and many blasters to collect (and don’t forget co-op) there are plenty of reasons to come back to this title. It’s $60, but it comes packaged with a peripheral that works better than most similar products on the market alongside a quality game.

Nerf N-Strike Elite is available exclusively on the Wii for $59.99. A copy of this game was given to us by the publisher for reviewing purposes.

Nostalgia is one of those things that you cannot compete with. That’s why game companies do remakes, re-releases, and sequels; familiarizing yourself with something that you fell in love with once gives you some wonderful feelings, and helps to bring you back to the time when you first found you enjoyed this particular point of interest. There’s a dark side to nostalgia as well though, when companies don’t get it right; like I said, nothing competes with nostalgia, and ruining people’s memories of something they once (or still) adore is a good way to bring out the fanboy/nerd rage in any of us.

I have owned and played with more G.I. Joe and Cobra toys than I care to admit, so when I received a copy of G.I. Joe: Rise of Cobra for review, I tried to do away with the nostalgic bits for a time, to see the game for what it was rather than what I wanted it to be. It turns out that this wasn’t necessary though, as the game has a surprising amount of that Joe character, even with its many faults in place. The story is not based on the movie entirely, despite the sharing of a title; instead, it pulls from G.I. Joe’s long history in both the use of characters and story, and delivers an entertaining–if somewhat drawn out–game experience.

G.I. Joe plays somewhat like a 3D Contra: you spend the bulk of the experience holding down the fire button and dodging incoming enemy fire while everything around you explodes. In that sense, it’s a good bit of fun, as you don’t have to worry about much besides making sure everything is destroyed except for you. Vehicles are just as ridiculous as they were in the cartoons and the toy line, with lasers and an infinite number of missiles and rockets firing from 37 places at once with each press of the right trigger. Every character in the game–of which there are 16 total (12 Joe and four unlockable Cobra)–has their own play style thanks to their special move. So you may like Duke a lot, but find that there’s a similarly playing Combat Soldier with a better special move that helps you more. There are three classes in all to master–Combat Soldiers are balanced, Commandos are great close range fighters, and Heavys are your big, cannon and mini-gun wielding Joes.

Co-op mode can be fun, especially given the game’s over-the-top nature, but if you don’t have a pal to play with, you can just switch between the two characters on your own, which allows you to build teams of classes you love. Putting Snake Eyes and Heavy Duty together was my favorite, as you got a close-range melee attacker with a katana mixed with a big dude holding a mini-gun to take out structures and cannons.

So those are the good parts of Rise of Cobra, but there’s a lot holding this game back from being a success. The camera is atrocious. I hate complaining about cameras, because I feel like it’s something we as gamers can adjust to if we play the game for more than five minutes, but you can’t adjust it in this game. If you’re going to take control of the camera away from the player, you have to make sure it works perfectly, and it doesn’t in Rise of Cobra. There will be times where the camera pans or switches direction on you, and there will still be enemies behind you–or worse, newly spawned enemies will come up from behind you from where you can’t see. You take fire, you start shooting in a random direction, but you don’t know if you’re hitting them. The targeting is supposed to be done automatically, but it also targets barrels, structures, and point bonuses in addition to enemies, so if you left any of those behind you could be shooting at those while you get shot to death by a foe you will never see.

Because of the way the difficulties work–on casual, you respawn when you go Man Down in exchange for some points, on advanced you are revived at a checkpoint, and on hardcore your character is out of action until you complete the level–this camera problem is significant. Dying on the harder difficulties because of the camera is frustrating, especially because of the checkpoint system that isn’t really a checkpoint system at all. Sure, it’s called that, but it’s basically just a loading area for the next portion of the level. If you fail a mission, you restart all the way back at the beginning, not at your previous checkpoint, which is a great feeling if you made it all the way to a boss fight or were killed because invisible foes hidden by the faulty camera took you out. This makes it so the game isn’t fun on the harder difficulties at all. I love punishing difficulty levels, because there’s nothing more satisfying in gaming than beating something that seemed impossible, but when it isn’t intentionally designed to be difficult, and is instead difficult due to poor design choices like the camera and checkpoint system, then I’m not as pleased.

The character design is also poor, though that is not Double Helix’s fault; that one is on the people who made the movie. These characters, originally designed in the cartoon in a way that made you instantly aware of what their job was, are all clad in leather or fatigues now, and this similarity in look takes away from their personalities. It’s even more obvious when someone like Wild Bill–who isn’t in the new movie–shows up, because he’s just like you expect him to be in both look and sound. This isn’t a problem with the Cobra leaders–Firefly, Destro, and Baroness all look like they are supposed to–but for the Joes…well, they look like a generic team of heroes fighting a much cooler opponent. The problem is exacerbated when the Accelerator Suits from the new movie are worn as well, because no matter who you use, the voice screaming, “YO JOE!” is the same, and all of a sudden even your female characters are bulked up and about six inches taller than they were.

There aren’t very many cutscenes in the game, but I’m not being hyperbolic when I say they remind me of things I saw in the old Command & Conquer games from the late 90s. They look worse than the in-game graphics, are very fuzzy and blurry looking, and add nothing to the game experience. Since the in-game environments and character models are somewhat bland and unappealing, you can imagine how bad these scenes look. I’m a gameplay over graphics guy for sure, but their inclusion, based on how they look, is just baffling.

Last, the game is too long. That sounds like a strange complaint when you’re talking about whether something is worth your money or not, but it’s true. There is not enough variety in the missions to justify the length of the game–at one point, the game even said what I was thinking when it was time to destroy yet another generator to open up a laser-defended gate. Normally I would be all for replaying levels to collect more items for unlockables and to find all of the missing Joes, but the levels in the Jungle are the same as the ones in the Arctic, except without snow. Sure, you’re geographically in a different place, but you wouldn’t know it by the way you play the game. So maybe it isn’t that the game is too long, but instead that there aren’t enough ideas in place for you to want the game to be as long as it is.

Blast Factor: While G.I. Joe: Rise of the Cobra didn’t do anything that offended my nostalgia or made me regret loving the cartoon series during my childhood, it did offend me as a gamer with its poor level design, awful camera, and occasional lack of personality. There are redeeming qualities though–the story is a perfect fit for the Joe universe, some of the unlockables (like the PSAs from the cartoons) are good a good time, and it can be fun with friends–but I have a hard time justifying the price tag.

G.I. Joe: Rise of Cobra is available on all major platforms. This review was written based on the Xbox 360 version, which retails for $49.95.

Transformers: Revenge of The Fallen the video game, when it releases June 23 alongside the film, will contain a record quantity of unlockables thanks to Publisher Activision’s elbow rubbing with famed Transformer toy maker Hasbro.

Those playing the game on either Xbox 360, PC, or PS3 can unlock the following:

• Six FULL episodes of the original Transformers animated television series
• Slideshows of original Hasbro comic art, propaganda-style comic covers and Luxoflux game concept art
• Generation 1 skins of Ironhide, Starscream and Long Haul, who are all playable characters in the single-player and multiplayer modes
• All in-game cinematic videos for replay
• One EXCLUSIVE standalone CG cinematic movie that cannot be seen anywhere else

No specific mention was made of just how to unleash these beasts of rarity, only that you need “complete various challenges throughout the game.” Whatever those may be is entirely unclear.

The popular action figure, G.I. JOE‚  is making the digital transition this year with both a video game and a major motion picture.

Details on the video game project thus far have been scant to say the least, but today Electronic Arts debuted the box art for every platform the game is set to be released on come August.

The cover art for every system except the Nintendo DS is exactly the same, and I’m not quite sure which I like more.

The game carries the same name as the film but separates itself in that the video game takes place directly after the events of the film with an all new narrative packed with “plenty of action.”

The console versions of G.I. JOE allow gamers to take control of 16 unlockable and ultimately playable characters while the DS version has a total of 11 unique characters.

See below for all box art.

You asked for it. Maybe. Electronic Arts releases it in the fall. Definitely. ‚ What is the elusive “it”?

Don’t get too excited as the title in question is Hasbro Family Game Night 2-now with added digital board games.

Game Night 2 is in development right now for exclusive release on Wii and DS slated for a to be determined fall release date and contains such famous Hasbro games on Wii as Operation, Connect 4X4, Jenga, Bop-it, and Pictureka.‚  Best of all, Mr. Potato head is the master of ceremonies (I feel that dude deserves his own game, but that’s just me).

The DS version of Game Night 2 has the aforesaid games as well as Battleship, SORRY! Sliders, and regular Connect 4.‚  EA has also promised Wi-Fi support to complement the game on-the-go.

Call me a purist, but the actual board games, the non-digital versions, just ooze with authenticity-something the video games cannot simulate.‚  But hey, times they are a changing (the terrible jokes will stop soon)

The partnership between EA and Hasbro may at times come off as something that younger gamers will benefit from the most, but there are some gems for all ages included in Hasbro’s vast catalog of games. Trivial Pursuit is one such game, and the two companies recently released it across the major consoles.

While they could have been forgiven for simply making Trivial Pursuit a digital experience rather than one you play on your coffee or kitchen table with friends, there was more work put into it than that, and to the benefit of the player. Rather than just re-create the classic style of gameplay and call it a day, two new game modes were introduced, as well as a few other nifty features that fans of stat tracking and leaderboards are sure to enjoy.

The classic game mode is here, and it works very well. Up to three friends can play along with you, just like you are playing the actual board game, only now everything is done on your television. You can waggle the Wii Remote to roll the dice, or you can just press A to accomplish the same goal. Moving your puck is performed with the IR pointer of the Wii Remote, which is efficient; it also helps that the game board only highlights the spaces you can move to with each roll, so you don’t have to count and can make quick decisions about your next move. The only part of the experience that is grating is the announcer, who has a variety of things to say, but repeats very often. Luckily he’s pushed to the background on a volume level, so he’s easily ignored.

If you’re looking for something a little different from Trivial Pursuit than the classic gameplay, you have the Facts & Friends mode. This is also with up to four players, but there is a twist. First of all, you do not need to land on the wedge space in order to acquire the piece; instead, you can answer a certain number of questions to earn points for each category, which in turn leads to a wedge. There are also bonus spaces where the roll again spaces used to be, and these can earn you wedges if you’re lucky enough to roll that option. When a wedge is acquired in this mode, either through points or ‚ bonuses, that category disappears from the board; those two things help to speed the game up considerably.

This isn’t the only change to the core game though. Now, your friends can bet on whether you know the answer to a question or not, and can also back up their confidence by saying they know the answer. If you answer in the way they bet you would, they get points, but they can also steal the points by guessing correctly if they claimed they knew. This hurts people who get through Trivial Pursuit by randomly guessing, but should make just about everyone else who actually knows trivia well happy.

There is a single-player mode, so you can enjoy the core experience of Trivial Pursuit with some added twists that make it worth your while, and give the game plenty of replay value even outside of playing with buddies. This mode is called “Clear the Board”, and the objective is to land on spaces in order to “clear” them from the board. You don’t need to answer the question correctly in order to clear the space, but you add to your multiplier and overall score if you do. Each correct question for a category gives the wedge space a boost to its multiplier (up to 10 times), and there is no penalty for answering a question on a regular space wrong, outside of losing the chance to score points on it. If you answer incorrectly on a wedge space though, you lose a multiplier for each response.

Each time you answer a wedge space question correctly, it erases all of that category from the board, making it smaller and easier to navigate. Once you have all of the wedges, you are asked a random final bonus question, the winning point total of which is multiplied by the total multiplier you have remaining. Each incorrect response here also takes off a multiplier point. You can replay this game just for the fun of some trivia, or to achieve a high score or fastest completion time. There are also objectives to complete, which are awarded based on how well you do in different categories, which gives you the ability to try to tackle the game different ways in order to clear them all.

I’m a big fan of trivia games, and though there are many different options out there in both the digital and board game worlds, Trivial Pursuit has been a longtime favorite. This edition is both a nod to the classic board game as well as loaded with options that should make even the most die-hard board game enthusiast intrigued. Let’s not forget that this game costs just $40, which is less than your standard retail game and also about the same price as the actual board game, despite having more options and game modes.If you’re looking for something to play with your friends or family that doesn’t involve exploding zombies or headshots, then Trivial Pursuit will more than fill that need.

I know a lot about a little and a little about a lot and have loved trivia games since I can first remember.‚  A birthday present ‚ years back “The book of useless information” fueled my love of random trivia and today I can name anything from a background character in a sitcom or the homerun leader in 1996 (Mark McGwire, 52, with the Oakland A’s).

Electronic Arts announced today that Trivial Pursuit, the epitome of all things trivia, and one of America’s favorite board games has gone digital and is available on every major console.

New categories, questions and modes of play complete with dynamic visuals and social interactivity round out this new version of the 25 year old board game.

Trivial Pursuit features three methods of play, “Classic,” which is straightforward Pursuit as you so well remember it, “Clear the Board,” a single player experience racing against the clock for the highest score, and most intriguingly “Facts and Friends,” a socially overwhelming multiplayer game mode where scoring is based on team responses and the ability to guess the opposing teams answers.

Furthermore, statistics ranging from the number of games won to the percentage of questions answered correctly can be accessed and analyzed (no one wants to team up with Joey, his winning percentage is .350) And to keep game-play moving along and interesting, a real-time ticker will scroll on the bottom of the TV, keeping players actively aware of how they stack up with opponents.

The grimy, dusty old board game looks to have received a total facelift and will bring the family together around the TV rather than the table, tables are for eating anyway.

“The TRIVIAL PURSUIT brand is celebrating 25 years of testing the knowledge of multiple generations based on the millions of families who have played the game over the years,” said Mark Blecher, General Manager of Digital Media and Gaming at Hasbro. “EA’s re-imagination of the time-honored classic for the digital consumer is nothing less than over-the-top fun that’s expected to be a big hit with scores of long-time as well as new TRIVIAL PURSUIT fans.”

Trivial Pursuit is the latest in EA/Hasbro collaborations, with the action figure turned action game G.I. Joe releasing later this year.‚  What will Hasbro hand over to EA next? Personally I’d love to play a first person shooter Mr.‚  Potato head title, where all hell is exacted on french fry lovers, but that may never happen.

Trivial Pursuit is currently available for PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 and Wii for 40$ and 30$ gets you the PlayStation 2 version.

The G.I. JOE action figure debuted some 45 years ago in 1964.‚  The humble beginnings of the mighty brand ‚ will reach a new level at next week’s Toy Fair in New York City, where the never before seen G.I. JOE video game will be unveiled.

Set to be released over the summer in conjunction with the feature film G.I. JOE the Rise of Cobra, Electronic Arts and the Digital Media and Gaming department at Hasbro have high hopes for the title.

Mark Blecher, general manager of the aforementioned department has this to say about the future release and its partnership with Electronic Arts.

“EA has tapped the legacy of the G.I. JOE vs. COBRA saga to create an amazing interactive experience inspired by the movie, comic books, animated series and iconography that we hope will resonate with millions of fans.”

Millions of fans? I was never a G.I. JOE fan, even as a kid, but who knows, maybe you’re out there G.I. JOE fans, how else does Hasbro sell all those toys!?

Hasbro promises compelling storytelling, a dynamic set of characters, and over the top action that will please everyday gamers as well as fans of the series.

The official G.I. JOE video game website shows an image of a man in black, dagger in hand, adorned with laser-tag-like goggles and attire.‚  Not very compelling if you ask me.‚  Furthermore, the brief synopsis “Fight Evil Before It Strikes” is border-line clichƒ©.

The very brief information the website does provide doesn’t really paint a colorful image in my head and excite me about kicking some COBRA butt.

According to the game’s website in G.I. JOE the video game you can expect to:

• Assemble an elite G.I. JOE team and call in reinforcements when the mission gets down and dirty.
• Choose from 12 of your favorite G.I. JOEs, each with a unique set of skills and weapons.
• Gear up with the latest in high-tech gadgets.
• Jump into, steal or hijack powerful G.I. JOE or COBRA vehicles, then fire away!

Make of it what you will, but none of those feats seem new or interesting to me.

G.I. JOE is currently in development for Xbox 360, Playstation 3, Nintendo Wii, Playstation 2, Playstation Portable, Nintendo DS, and mobile devices set for a summer release following the August 7^th debut of the feature film.

About EA, Hasbro, Spyglass Entertainment and Paramount Pictures

EA Confirms Covert Mission to Create Action-Packed G.I. JOE‚® Video Game Inspired by Upcoming Film From Paramount Pictures, Spyglass Entertainment and Hasbro

G.I. JOE Set to Invade All Major Video Game Platforms in Summer 2009

Toy Fair 2009

REDWOOD CITY, Calif.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ:ERTS) today announced that development is underway to bring Hasbro’s legendary G.I. JOE‚® brand to all major console and handheld gaming platforms in summer 2009 to coincide with the theatrical release of the G.I. JOE: THE RISE OF COBRA live-action movie from Paramount Pictures and Spyglass Entertainment, in association with Hasbro, which opens in theaters August 7, 2009. EA will unveil a “first look” of the G.I. JOE‚® video game at Hasbro’s Showroom at Toy Fair on February 15-17, 2009 in New York City.

“As Hasbro and Paramount Pictures reignite the G.I. JOE‚® property this year with an all-new toy line and film, EA is excited to play a major role in bringing this icon of pop culture history to a new generation of enthusiasts through interactive gaming,” said Chip Lange, General Manager and Vice President of EA Hasbro. “G.I. JOE‚® offers exceptionally rich storylines and a cast of characters that lends itself incredibly well to creating an over-the-top action adventure video game that will thrill gamers as well as G.I. JOE‚® fans.”

For fans of all ages, 2009 is gearing up to become another watershed milestone in the timeless franchise by introducing even more new ways to engage, immerse and play within the G.I. JOE‚® universe. The G.I. JOE‚® video game will feature an exclusive storyline that picks up where the live-action movie leaves off, allowing players to re-create and re-live the greatest moments from the film, cartoon series and action figure toy line. The game will feature 12 G.I. JOE‚® characters, each with unique abilities and weapons. Adding to the adrenaline rush will be an intense single-screen co-op mode allowing two players to easily unite as a team in a classic struggle between good and evil as they work together to defeat the powers of the COBRA organization. The G.I. JOE‚® video game is under development for Xbox 360‚® videogame and entertainment system, PLAYSTATION‚®3 computer entertainment system, Wii^TM, PlayStation‚®2, PSP‚® (PlayStation‚®Portable), Nintendo DS^TM, and mobile devices.

“G.I. JOE‚® has been an icon of action for 45 years,” said Mark Blecher, General Manager of Digital Gaming and Media at Hasbro. “EA has tapped the legacy of the G.I. JOE vs. COBRA saga to create an amazing interactive experience inspired by the movie, comic books, animated series and iconography that we hope will resonate with millions of fans.”

For more than four decades, G.I. JOE‚® has been one of the premiere brands in the history of boys’ toys. Originating the term “action figure” in 1964, Hasbro’s G.I. JOE‚® brand ushered in a new play pattern that forever changed the scope of the toy industry. The G.I. JOE‚® brand made another revolutionary introduction in 1984 with the release of the G.I. JOE vs. COBRA toy line, which introduced a generation of boys to the heroic G.I. JOE‚® forces, led by Duke, and their epic struggle to defeat the evil COBRA organization. The G.I. JOE vs. COBRA saga featured a diverse cast of characters – both good and evil – that became a part of pop culture through Hasbro’s toy line, an animated television series and best-selling comic book franchise.

For more information about the G.I. JOE‚® video game and to sign up for updates, visit gijoe.ea.com

About the G.I. JOE: THE RISE OF COBRA Film

Paramount Pictures and Spyglass Entertainment Present, In Association With Hasbro, A di Bonaventura Pictures Production of A Stephen Sommers Film: “G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra” starring Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje, Christopher Eccleston, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Byung Hun Lee, Sienna Miller, Rachel Nichols, Ray Park, Saƒ¯d Taghmaoui, Channing Tatum, Marlon Wayans and Dennis Quaid. The film is directed by Stephen Sommers. The story is by Michael B. Gordon and Stuart Beattie & Stephen Sommers. The screenplay is by Stuart Beattie and David Elliot & Paul Lovett. Based on Hasbro’s G.I. Joe‚® Characters. The film is produced by Lorenzo di Bonaventura, Brian Goldner and Bob Ducsay. The executive producers are Stephen Sommers, David Womark, Gary Barber, Roger Birnbaum and Erik Howsam. The director of photography is Mitchell Amundsen. The production designer is Edward Verreaux. The film editors are Bob Ducsay and Jim May. The costume designer is Ellen Mirojnick. The music is by Alan Silvestri. This film has not yet been rated.

About Electronic Arts

Electronic Arts Inc. (EA), headquartered in Redwood City, California, is the world’s leading interactive entertainment software company. Founded in 1982, the Company develops, publishes, and distributes interactive software worldwide for video game systems, personal computers, cellular handsets and the Internet. Electronic Arts markets its products under four brand names: EA SPORTS^TM, EA^TM, EA SPORTS Freestyle^TM and POGO^TM. In fiscal 2008, EA posted GAAP net revenue of $3.67 billion and had 27 titles that sold more than one million copies. EA’s homepage and online game site is www.ea.com. More information about EA’s products and full text of press releases can be found on the Internet at http://info.ea.com.

About Paramount Pictures Corporation

Paramount Pictures Corporation (PPC), a global producer and distributor of filmed entertainment, is a unit of Viacom (NYSE: VIA, VIA.B), a leading content company with prominent and respected film, television and digital entertainment brands. The company’s labels include DW Studios, Paramount Pictures, Paramount Vantage, Paramount Classics, MTV Films and Nickelodeon Movies. PPC operations also include Paramount Digital Entertainment, Paramount Famous Productions, Paramount Home Entertainment, Paramount Pictures International, Paramount Licensing Inc., Paramount Studio Group, and Worldwide Television Distribution.

About Hasbro

Hasbro (NYSE:HAS) is a worldwide leader in children’s and family leisure time entertainment products and services, including the design, manufacture and marketing of games and toys ranging from traditional to high-tech. Both internationally and in the U.S., its PLAYSKOOL, TONKA, MILTON BRADLEY, PARKER BROTHERS, TIGER, CRANIUM and WIZARDS OF THE COAST brands and products provide the highest quality and most recognizable play experiences in the world. ‚©2009 Hasbro, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

EA, EA SPORTS, EA SPORTS Freestyle, and Pogo are trademarks or registered trademarks of Electronic Arts Inc. in the U.S. and/or other countries. G.I. JOE and all related characters are trademarks of Hasbro and are used with permission. Nintendo DS and Wii are trademarks of Nintendo. Microsoft, Xbox and Xbox 360 are trademarks of the Microsoft group of companies. “PlayStation”, “PLAYSTATION” and PSP are registered trademarks of Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.

You get 10 points without any bonuses for placing the word L-A-W-S-U-I-T on either a Scrabble or a Scrabulous board, but Hasbro doesn’t want the latter to keep its place in the lexicon of American pop culture.

Hasbro owns the North American rights to Scrabble, and they have sued two Indian brothers and their company, RJ Softwares over their 500,000 daily user Scrabulous online video game on the popular Facebook social networking portal.

Scrabulous has been one of the most popular “Facebook Apps” since the website allowed users to add games and third party modules to their profiles.

In its lawsuit, Hasbro asserts that Scrabulous violates its copyright and trademark rights. Hasbro has also asked Facebook to block the game on the website, CNN reported.

Electronic Arts released an official version of Scrabble for North American Facebook users last week, as part of their licensing deal with Hasbro to bring popular board games into online, PC and console-based platforms. The official Scrabble port has not deterred fans from the older Scrabulous. Both games are available for free.

Mattel, which owns the rights to Scrabble outside the US and Canada, did not join the lawsuit.

Some of the early CD-ROM classics included Battleship, Monopoly, Risk and The Game of Life (still the best PSX board game title).

Now EA is bringing the tabletop and toy titles back to the video game universe — including Nerf!

“EA and Hasbro want to give families new ways to enjoy games; we want give them a new way to come together, connect, spend time and have fun around the TV or online,” said Chip Lange, Vice President and General Manager of EA’s Hasbro Studio. “Bringing the spirit of these games to life as video games has allowed us to create really unique and creative experiences for families and friends of all ages to enjoy together at home or online.”

Games include:

Littlest Pet Shop: Wii, DS and PC
Fall

Littlest Pet Shop brings the magic of owning your own pet shop to your home. EA brings the quirkiness and cuteness of the popular Hasbro girl’s brand to life in a new digital world. Players can explore three unique environments as they unlock new pets, playsets, accessories and more.

Players will discover magical moments of delight as they build relationships with their pets. This game is the next must-have addition to fans growing Littlest Pet Show collection. Add to the ultimate Littlest Pet Show collection with three different versions of the Nintendo DS game; each with unique pets.

NERF “N-Strike:” Wii and DS
Fall

Become the master of mayhem in the first NERF blaster action game. In a world created to be the perfect landscape for NERF pandemonium, players can wreak havoc and perfect their blasting skills or challenge friends to clashes with both single and multi-player game modes. With the brand new custom NERF blaster, players can then take the action outside as their controller transforms to fire actual NERF darts!

EA MOBILE

Scrabble: mobile phones
Currently available in North America

This exciting update of the classic board game now includes flexible difficulty levels, built-in word list, dynamic animations, scrolling and full-board views. Easy-to-use controls allow for alone play, a challenge with computer in a phone, or enjoy pass ‘n play with a friend. Easily keep track of game scores and statistics. Fun new features appeal to both wordplay mavens and casual gamers. Test word wits with Scrabble!

Monopoly Here and Now: mobile phones
March

Monopoly Here and Now, a modern makeover of the world’s most popular board game. Buy and sell destinations around the U.S. as you compete to own it all and win! Unique player icons, sound effects, vivid graphics and easy-to-use, one-button controls deliver all the excitement of the beloved game.

Yahtzee Adventures: mobile phones
April

Play the treasured dice game on your phone. Travel the globe, meet new characters and challenge them to a game, roll the colorful dice and be the first to score a Yahtzee! Enjoy Classic, Duplicate, Rainbow and Battle modes. Pass ‘n Play with your friends, or try your hand at a Yahtzee single-player adventure. Dynamic, exciting gameplay, easy controls, automatic scorekeeping deliver terrific mobile entertainment for you, your friends and family.

POGO.COM GAMES

Yahtzee: online
Summer

Shake, Score and Shout Yahtzee with family and friends online! There are two ways to win in this fun and addictive game from Pogo.com. Compete for the top score on a real-time leader board as you and up to 19 people roll the dice in a series of timed rounds. Show your team spirit as you collaborate with other players to advance your team goal and earn bonuses for scoring Yahtzee together. Take the Yahtzee fun online!

Monopoly Here & Now: World Edition: online
Fall

Risk it all to own it all online! Jet set across the globe and buy and sell property in the most desirable cities in the world. Play alone or wheel and deal with up to 3 people using one of three sets of rules or make the game more challenging by customizing your own game. The unique player icons, sound effects and graphics deliver all the excitement of the beloved game. Will you be the next the next online billionaire?

Trivial Pursuit: online
Fall

Get your daily dose of trivia fun online! Challenge your daily trivia knowledge with an easy to access, interactive online trivia game. Answer the trivia questions correctly and earn points towards your wedges in pursuit of completing your pie collection by the end of the week. The player with a full pie wins! Not a trivia expert? Take a stab at it. There’s something in it for everyone!

Operation: PC/download
Fall

The medicine is madcap and YOU are the M.D. as the ER goes arcade-crazy in Operation. Your role: emergency surgeon. Your challenge: diagnose and treat patients by successfully performing operations, each one a mini-game. Resources are limited and the clock is ticking, so you’ve got to heal ‘em up and move ‘em out…. Do well, and you earn points and upgrades for your hospital. Do poorly, and you’ll face malpractice lawsuits from angry plaintiffs with glowing noses. Either way, Operation will have you — and your patients — in stitches!