The story behind the creation, and even the funding, of Dungeon Hearts is quite amazing. Back at GDC this year, Devolver Digital held an open call of sorts to indie developers to pitch their ideas. Chris Pavia, Cube Roots independent developer was one of the participants, and that same night Dungeon Hearts was signed.

Dungeon Hearts is a mix of RPG and puzzle elements scheduled to hit PC and mobile devices next year. The game has players matching three gems of the same color to help their party unleash devastating attacks on various enemies that inhabit its 16 unique environments. Dungeon Hearts will feature various special abilities, unlockable heroes, and a level cap of 99 to keep players felling monsters and matching pieces for a long time.

“Dungeon Hearts has been a labor of love for a while now. As an indie it can be tough bringing your project to a publisher for fear they are going to strip away the developer’s personality from the final product,” said Cube Roots founder Chris Pavia. “It has been quite the opposite with the guys over at Devolver Digital, it’s been great working with people who embrace the weird and quirky.”

Dungeon Hearts didn’t start out as a puzzle/RPG hybrid either. Pavia first wanted to create a “brothel simulator,” but Devolver Digital CFO Fork Parker recommended he shift visions a bit “because medieval brothel simulators just don’t sell anymore.”

The bidding war between two internet giants has come to a close as Google just acquired mobile app developer Milk, out bidding Facebook in the process.

The San Fransisco-based developer is helmed by Digg co-founder Kevin Rose.

TechCrunch reports that the acquisition cost around $30 million, making each of the employees in the small studio a millionaire.

Milk recently shut down its app Oink, a Yelp type app that allowed users to rate and suggest items within a store.

If the shockingly large screen and 4G speed on the LG Nitro HD isn’t enough for you, we’ll delve into the greedy, dirty little details a little bit.

When, you get up close, the Nitro HD’s 4.5″ screen might as well be a 50″ plasma in your den. Combined with 4G speed, it turns the phone into a portable man cave that you can use to actually fulfill those fantasies of watching a football game during a wedding or making a last minute fantasy team switch during church that you see on all those commercials.

The 4G LTE is amazing. It’s still relatively new around here in Boston, so we’re still getting used to not having to troll around for Wifi hotspots to download vides and apps. YouTube videos stream just as fast as they would on WiFi. That makes watching game highlights and an occasional catch-up episode easy on the train or during downtime at work.

It is amazing how far the cell phone has come in the past few years, and this is a prime example. The display is in 1280 x 720 resolution, at 329 pixels per inch, with real RGB pixels, giving you the best possible display on a cell phone.

And the phone zooms Android 2.3 with a 1.5 GHz dual-core processor.

The display is truly impressive. There’s a lot of real estate, and it’s incredibly crisp when playing videos. I checked out some highlights from my Steelers absolute laydown against the 49ers on Monday night, and I loved how detailed everything looked on the phone’s screen. Everything sounded clean and clear as well.

The ESPN ScoreCenter app also looks amazing on the larger screen of the Nitro, letting you check on all your teams, but what’s even more amazing is the ESPN Bowl Bound 2011 app that gives you highlights and analysis of the coming college bowl season. If you’re not a huge college football fan, all you have to do is play with this app for five minutes, and you’ll be hooked.

What makes it easier is that, on the 4G LTE network, the videos and data stream as fast as they would if you were sitting at your office computer. The only difference is that you can check everything on your mobile man cave of a phone instead of “company time” on your work computer.

Having high-def video content over 4G LTE makes a world of difference. You really notice the improvement over the grainy “mobile video” content of yesterday. It’s like having HDTV at your fingertips.

If you’re a Google user, the phone will be more comfortable right away, because the Nitro HD comes preloaded with the major Google apps like Maps, Mail, and Calendar. There is also an office-esque app, visual voicemail, and YouTube and Twitter onboard.

The 8 megapixel camera is also a great feature, same as the iPhone 4S. Finally, phones take real photos.

The whole package also makes it easier on the battery. The display is energy-efficient, and the battery gives you up to seven hours of talk time, so you can also use your man cave as a phone.

What makes LG Nitro’s True HD IPS Display so amazing? 16:9 Aspect ratio for widescreen entertainment, sharper, crisper images, amazingly accurate colors and more. Exclusively available on AT&T’s 4G LTE network. Find out more at NitrobyLG.com.

LG provided a sample phone for the purposes of this article, and the author was paid or otherwise directly compensated to promote the product in the article.

Carving their niche out as the “Business Model” of smart phones, the Blackberry brand has been a constant in the market since their premier in 2003. Famously becoming the first “Presidential Smart Phone” through President Obama’s constant endorsements, the brand has recently come under some major criticism due to a worldwide blackout of servers last October and the pressure of the leaps and bounds made by rival companies such as Google and Apple. Blackberry however is looking to show that they can still compete in the market with a new line of 4G phones, including the new Blackberry Torch 9810 (the 9800’s successor). Blast was recently able to test out the 9810 before its November 9 T-Mobile release date and see what the new model has to offer.

Hardware

Boasting a great deal more power and storage space than its predecessor, the 9810 comes with a 1.2 GHz processor chip (compared to the 624 MHz of the 9800) with 768 MB internal Ram (512 MB internal RAM  on the 9800). The memory has also doubled from 4 GB to 8, with cards allowing for up to to 32.

While the still image camera remains the same 5 Megapixels resolution as the 9800, the video camera has been upgraded from 420p to 702p making it the first Blackberry phone to record in HD. The display screen has also upgraded its resolution from the earlier model’s 480x360px to 640x480px.

The battery is extremely resilient; lasting around 28 hours under heavy strain (phone calls, texts, music, social apps, ect.) with a posted 6.8 hours of talk time. The phone however will begin to lock out functions as the battery dies, which can lead to some frustration near the end of the charge.

Layout/Application use

An extremely streamlined layout, the 9810 divides its apps from the main screen into five different categories.  All: a general view of the app; Favorites: a personalized section for users to save their favorite apps; Media: the music, pictures, and videos of the  phone as well as the camera and video camera; Downloads: the extra apps from the initially installed ones; and Frequent: where your most used apps are placed for easy access.

The media applications are extremely simplified, with the music system a carbon I-Tunes copy and the picture system divided into camera and downloaded pictures. Attached to the phone from the start is AT&T music, Live T.V., Slacker’s Radio, and Youtube for access to online media.

It should be mentioned as a negative point that the web browser does not run a Flash Player and the web browser tends to be all together nonfunctional compared to the competition. Anything that is made especially for the phone however (Twitter, Facebook, Okcupid, etc.) work very well.

The notification system is thinned out into a single section, with updates on your email, text messages, and social sites all condensed into a drop down menu from the main screen. There is also a Social Feeds app that comes standard with the phone that condenses all your social network feeds into one screen (organized by the time they were posted) allowing a quick look at all your social media updates.

There are still flaws within the social network apps. The Blackberry Facebook app for example lacks a way to check your events list. There is also the standing problem of Blackberry phones not including a free GPS app as most of their competition do.

Verdict

The Black Berry Torch 9810 is a great improvement on the 9800 in many ways. It is a straight forward 4G phone with the same simple features that Blackberry fans enjoy. However, many of the complaints that are made about Blackberry phones are still present and it is the least powerful of the newest line from the major distributors, with both new Droid Bionic and iPhone 4S having significantly better resolution, higher quality cameras, free GPS, and more comparable Internet browsers. It does however come in at almost one hundred dollars cheaper with activation than the other two on average, making the power difference less of a hit.

Anyone who is a fan of Blackberry would be well off upgrading to the Torch 9810. Also anyone looking to make a leap to a 4G phone without paying the Droid and I-Phone prices may also find The Torch 9810 worth checking out.

The Blackberry Torch 9810 is available November 9.

The federal government is taking steps to block AT&T and T-Mobile merger on antitrust grounds.

The Justice Department took the step by filing suit to stop the merger, saying it would hurt competition and drive up prices, the Wall Street Journal reported.

At a press conference Wednesday, Deputy Attorney General James Cole said the merger would result in tens of millions of consumers facing fewer choices and lower-quality products, WSJ reported.

The Justice Department added that AT&T can propose fixes in the deal that would satisfy the government.

The massive $39 billion combination of two of the “big four” American mobile phone companies would create a company with 130 million subscribers, surpassing Verizon as the No. 1 wireless company in the US.

AT&T is currently No. 2, and T-Mobile is 4.

The third place wireless company, Spring Nextel Corp., is also against the merger.

AT&T stock was down nearly 4 percent on the news. Sprint was up nearly 10 percent.

I wanted to write this review about how Angry Birds, Rovio’s mobile game that’s become a major cultural icon had finally jumped the shark. About how the game’s flirtation with Hollywood in it’s partnership with the upcoming family film Rio had finally done it in.

I couldn’t.

Somehow, Angry Birds: Rio is just as fun, if not more so than the original or it’s quasi-sequel Angry Birds: Seasons. Featuring more detailed graphics and sound, the latest chapter of the Angry Birds saga may seem like a cheap whore-out for a semi-related movie, but it’s still just as addicting as ever.

If you’ve somehow missed the Angry Birds phenomena totally, the game is built on simple mechanics. Using a sling-shot and a nice set of physics, you launch a number of birds, each with different abilities into structures in hopes that they topple over and crush your enemy pigs. It sounds quite simple but as evidence by just how many people have downloaded the game — it’s quite addictive as well. In Rio though, the pigs are nowhere to be found, instead you’re smashing these structures in order to free caged birds (eventually leading up to the main characters from the film) and eventually take out monkeys. Rio features 60 stages with a boss fight thrown in for good measure, and while that’s not even close to the amount of stages in the original game, it’s clear from the menu screen that Rovio intends on adding levels soon. What’s most interesting perhaps about Rio is that there’s a decided learning curve thrown in that was absent from the original. Yes, the game is a bit easier, especially in the beginning of the game, but it’s a smart move by Rovio since the game is likely to picked up by a lot more younger games thanks to its association with the film.

The visuals in Rio have also been upgraded from its predecessor. It may seem trivial, but the caged birds lend a much needed sense of color to the environments, which have also been spiffed up with a more detailed overhaul.

The Blast Factor: You already own Angry Birds, hell you probably already have it on multiple platforms, but I still can’t help but recommend Rio. It’s a slightly updated version of a game that’s become much of a cultural phenomena, plus what else are you going to play on the john?

A long term study is underway that will track the cell phone usage of 250,000 cell phone users between the ages of 18 and 69 over three decades. In addition to looking for cancer links, the study will be on the lookout for links to neurological diseases such as Parkinson's and Alzheimer's. (Pink Sherbert Photography via Flickr)

Cell phones have only been in widespread use for a couple of decades, which is far too short a time for us to know conclusively whether or not using them could cause cancer. Research thus far appears to indicate that most of us have little if anything to worry about.

According to the federally funded National Cancer Institute, the low-frequency electromagnetic radiation that cell phones give off when we hold them up to our heads is “non-ionizing,” meaning it cannot cause significant human tissue heating or body temperature increases that could lead to direct damage to cellular DNA. By contrast, X-rays consist of high-frequency ionizing electromagnetic radiation and can lead to the kind of cellular damage resulting in cancer. Nonetheless, some cell phone users and researchers still worry about our cell phone usage, given how much we now use them and how little we know about their potential long-term effects.

The reason the issue keeps coming up is that some initial studies in Europe, where cell phone usage caught on a decade before the U.S., showed links between some forms of tumors and heavy cell phone usage. As a result, researchers teamed up to do a more definitive study, called the “Interphone” study, across 13 countries between 2000 and 2004. The results, published in May 2010 in the peer-reviewed International Journal of Epidemiology, indicated no increased risk of developing two of the most common types of brain tumors, glioma and meningioma, from typical everyday cell phone usage. Study participants who reported spending the most time on their phones showed a slightly increased risk of developing gliomas, but researchers considered this finding inconclusive due to factors such as recall bias, whereby participants with brain tumors may have simply remembered past cell phone use differently from healthy respondents.

Researchers looking to get past the relatively short timing window and the recall bias issues of the Interphone study recently launched a longer term study, dubbed COSMOS (short for Cohort Study on Mobile Communications), in Europe. Some 250,000 cell phone users between the ages of 18 and 69 and located in Britain, Finland, the Netherlands, Sweden and Denmark will participate by allowing researchers to track their cell phone usage and health over three decades. According to an April 22, 2010 article in Reuters, the study will factor in the use of hands-free devices and how people carry their phones and will also be on the lookout for links to neurological diseases such as Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s.

There are some precautions you can take to minimize whatever risk may exist. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) suggests reserving the use of cell phones for shorter conversations, or for times when a conventional phone isn’t available. Also, using a hands-free device places more distance between the phone and your head, significantly reducing the amount of radiation exposure. If the fact that many states require hands-free devices for using a cell phone while driving isn’t enough to make you go out and spend the extra money on such an accessory, maybe the cancer risk, perceived or real, will.

So here is a list, in no particular order, of five applications/widgets available for free on the Andriod Market that everyone should have downloaded (if they don’t already) on their android smartphone. If there are other applications that you feel are vital to the operation of your android smartphone, please feel free to comment below and just maybe you’ll make someone very happy for providing them an application treasure trove.

1. Widgetsoid (2.x)

This app lets the user create customizable widgets that looks like the “Power Control” widget that the android phone already has. What is particularly awesome about this app is that you can change the color schemes, use any of your apps, settings, and other tools as buttons (against Power Control’s GPS, WiFi, BT, Sync, Brightness buttons only and without any customizations). This widget creator allows users to modify the buttons to control silence/vibrate/ring, or use the phone’s flash as a flashlight on command, or the amount of RAM your phone is using, or even a battery widget that takes you directly to your phone’s battery usage. This widget simply has it all and is a great starting point to customizing your smartphone with a sleek and organized design.

2. Fancy Widget

This widget, when placed on your home screen, displays a digital clock, the date, battery percentage, and most importantly the weather (with a temperature gauge, his and lows of the day, and a weather icon) in a “fancy” looking interface. You can tap the time to bring up the customizable settings or you can tap the weather icon that will immediately bring up a screen that forecasts the next three days, gives you sunrise and sunset times for the current date, and even humidity and wind calculations for the current date. You can even change the color combinations and the location of all the information displayed. Essentially, this widget not only looks cool on your phone, but is also a productive tool to keep you informed of the weather situation in your locale.

3. PdaNet

As my absolute favorite app, PdaNet allows the user to tether their phone to a computer, laptop, tablet, etc. and use the phone’s 3G/4G service to browse the internet on the computer. Although the critics may say, “but most android smartphones already have USB enabled tethering”, this app also pops up incoming text messages on your laptop that allows the user to directly answer from their computer rather than picking up the phone to respond. The only thing with this app is that you must go on PdaNet’s website and download the software for the computer you plan to tether to. This app is particularly useful when you want to peruse your favorite websites (like Blast!) on trains and other public transit systems or anywhere else you can imagine that doesn’t supply free and secure WiFi. Once that’s done, all you have to worry about is going over your service provider’s data plan.

4. Handcent SMS

There are a lot of messaging service applications out there, but I like Handcent the best for its reliability and customizability. This app lets the user completely customize their text message interface, from icons to fonts, to LED color notifications on the front of most android phones. If you are like every other person who has went through high school with text messaging, then you’ll want an app that allows you to pick color schemes, backgrounds, appearance settings and so on. If you haven’t tried this app yet, give it a whirl and maybe you’ll experience some more pleasure in text messaging.

5. Lookout Mobile Security

This app offers spyware and malware protection, backup to their website (after creating an account on the website) and it offers a missing device service. If you lose your phone in between the cushions or leave it behind, you can go on that same website where your backup rests and make your phone ring, even if it’s on silent, so that you can find it in no time. If you regularly keep your GPS enabled, you can also get a GPS location on your device through the website. If someone has the sleight of hand to steal your phone, then this app may bring you back to your long lost android smartphone and catch a thief in the process. What an app.

Honorable Mention: Launcher Pro

This last one replaces the standard android home screen functions and replaces it with a similar, but customizable user interface. Launcher Pro also has a variety of new icons, a bottom app bar, color customizations, backup, and a customizable app drawer. This app may offer a smoother experience for some users in comparison to some of the others (like Dolphin Browser or even the stock android Launcher), but as these smartphones become more power (Dual-Core, Snapdragon processors), the less smoothness will be noticeable between the different platforms.

By 2015, there will be approximately 804 million smartphones worldwide. Lucky for football fans, the NFL and  mobile advertising agency Adzookie.com are already looking to the future, promising that by 2015 the Super Bowl will be streamed live via an iPhone.

Romeo Mendoza, CEO of the Orange, Calif.-based company that plans to handle the advertising, Adzookie.com, said in a statement that “Streaming the Super Bowl on a phone just makes sense. Cell phones already outnumber television sets 5-to-1.”

Given that the 2010 Super Bowl brought in 106 million viewers and earned over $300 million in network advertising sales — that’s $2.8 to $3 million per 30-second advertisement — streaming the Super Bowl on smartphones is a smart business decision. Further, through cell phones, advertisers can run multiple ads at the same time, catering to individual viewers based on age, gender, income and location, something that television ads cannot do.

“Companies prefer to promote their business via mobile ads than other forms of advertising,” Mendoza said.

Because of the increasing popularity of smartphone use and the edge that mobile advertising has over television advertising, viewers can expect to eventually watch all of their favorite shows via cell phones, said Mendoza.

“The Super Bowl is just the beginning,” he continued. “Eventually all programming will be mobile. We plan on being there when it happens.”

With cell phones getting "smarter", faster, and multitasking-ier, the need for them to be more mobile is inherent.  With every evolution of the cell phone, each generation seems to get smaller and lighter in order to appeal to our sleek society.  Unfortunately, having a phone, smaller and thinner than the wallet of a BP executive means you might forget it somewhere (and GOD FORBID we leave the house to grab a 40 of Mickey’s and leave our celli behind).

This is precisely the dilemma which spawned: BRINGRR

The idea, conceived in 2009 by James Logan, was to solve the common problem of leaving your phone at home, at the store, at a bar, or that one time with the stripper in the VIP room.  The idea behind the gadget is that if used, you will no longer have to fear "Mercedes" is making long distance calls to her family in Taiwan on your dime.

By plugging the device into the power port or lighter outlet of your car, any Bluetooth enabled phone is now "tracked" by the Bringrr system.  Once the car is started, Bringrr, paired with your phone, searches for it in your car.  If you have the phone on you, the light on the device turns blue and distinctively chimes, assuring that you still have your precious.  If you did, in fact forget it, say, inside that girl’s house, you never would have driven all the way to Dighton before realizing.  If the paired phone is not found in the vicinity of your car’s interior, Bringrr turns red, and a different chime is heard.

The Product is due to hit the shelves mid-July. You can purchase your very own "Cell phone Rememberer" at www.bringrr.com for $35.

For as many times as I have had to cancel my plan, change my number, and get a new phone, due to my own drunken stupidity, this product is definitely worth its weight in rupees.

Apparently the iPhone isn’t enough to maintain exclusivity.

Electronics store RadioShack has announced that it has added T-Mobile wireless phone services to compete with AT&T in its more than 4,000 stories.

“Our mobility strategy is rooted in customer advocacy and allows us to offer the best solution for consumers’ needs across multiple carriers, plans, phones and accessories,” said Julian Day, RadioShack’s chairman and chief executive officer, in a statement. “In a highly mobile world, keeping our customers seamlessly connected to one another is a commitment we are very focused on delivering.”

RadioShack generates about 30 percent of its sales revenue from wireless phones.

Katamari is fun, and has been successful on every platform that it visits, even those without the dual-analog setup that made it so intuitive back on the Playstation 2. Rolling with Katamari, the mobile version of the series, is no exception, as even when limited to four directional buttons on a phone you still get that Katamari experience you were craving, and in your pocket.

The presentation is obviously different than on its console cousins-the Prince is now seen rolling his Katamari ball on a 2D background that looks somewhat isometric, rather than the full 3D worlds we are used to seeing. The gameplay is the same though: Prince needs to collect objects to make his Katamari larger, and must do so within the time limits imposed by the King of the Cosmos. Sometimes the levels are about collecting different versions of one kind of object (such as crabs to make the constellation Cancer, or lots of blue things to make a Blue Star). There are five game modes in all: Roll a Star, Roll a Color, Rock n Rolling Racing, Don’t Touch, and Roll an Object. This keeps things fresh, as even though you do the same thing in each level-namely, roll around to collect objects-you have different goals to strive for each time out.

The levels and requirements are designed in a way that an experienced Katamari roller will easily reach the King of the Cosmos’ demands with time to spare, in order to make a larger ball that will please him. For those who don’t have that experience though, or would just like some time to become accustomed to the new control scheme, Rolling with Katamari is there to help with a few instructional levels that tutor you on the controls and point of the game.

The game comes packaged with 30 levels, but there also downloadable theme-based ones, such as “My Valentine”, “Winter”, and “Halloween”. Within these levels, the objects are theme-based, and in some cases, such as in “My Valentine”, the messages that pop up each time you snag an item are going to say things specific to that level that relate to the theme. You can download these levels straight from the game’s menu rather than navigating whatever store your phone uses as well.

The controls work, and they work well. You press up on your phone to move Prince in a direction, and you use the other directional buttons to move Prince around the Katamari; pressing up makes him push the Katamari from whichever direction you chose with the other buttons. In order to dash, you press up twice quickly, and based on my time with the game, you will want to dash often. You can also reverse direction by jumping to the other side of the ball, just like you can in the console versions of the game. Once you become accustomed to the controls, you’ll be rolling around with the best of them in no time.

The best thing about Rolling with Katamari is its high replay value. Sure, you can blow through the 30 levels and the downloadable ones in no time if you’re dedicated (or have a long commute), but the fact that you are supposed to improve on your scores constantly is going to make you come back again and again, just like classic arcade games. In addition to that, you also have to find your cousins and the presents hidden in each level, just like in the console Katamari games. This gives you reason to dive back in, even if you have already rolled around in the kitchen countless times.

It’s just $6.99 to have unlimited Rolling with Katamari use on your phone, which is easily worth it given the number of levels, the downloadable content, the ease of play and the high replay value. Though not a 3D game like you are used to seeing from the series, this version of the game is faithful to the series, and worth it for any die-hard Katamari fan out there, or those without access to any of the other titles.

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.

Playboy Games: Pool Party has launched for mobile phones.

Your mind is now that much dirtier.

This game’s launch marks the first part of a multi-year, multi-title agreement between Playboy and THQ for developing non-nude but “Playboy lifestyle-themed” games that are stacked with mini-games and pseudo wholesome challenges like frisbee throwing, bucking-bronco rides, water balloon fights, and jumping in the pool.

Players can customize their own low-resolution babe with bikinis, hairstyles, shoes, stockings, and accessories.

Get all that for $6.99. Just don’t let anyone see you playing it, or they’ll think you’re a douchebag.

Vivendi Games Mobile announced today its first-half 2008 lineup of mobile games featuring movie platforms and other games from first-person shooters to casual games.

First-Half 2008 Lineup:

Prison Break

Based on the hit FOX TV show, Prison Break, the mobile game is an action-adventure challenge that takes place in the Fox River prison. Players will embody the most famous captive from the TV show, Michael Scofield, to help him and his brother make their way to freedom. The game incorporates all the winning TV show elements, including the original plot and characters. Players prepare to escape by collecting items, conspiring with other inmates and gaining their support. In the escape attempt, players will solve puzzles by using collected items and their prison mates’ skills.

SWAT Elite Troops

An innovative sequel to the 2006 Spike TV Videogames Awards Mobile Game of the Year, SWAT Elite Troops introduces the Instant Tactical Decision system, a design breakthrough for squad-based mobile action games. The game also features unique aiming system which raises the intensity of gunfights. Players will experience the power of the Special Weapons and Tactics force and lead a team of three highly trained officers through 15 authentic crisis situations to safely rescue hostages.

The Bourne Conspiracy

Based on Robert Ludlum’s best-selling books and blockbuster film franchise, The Bourne Conspiracy mobile game is a unique action-adventure espionage game where players become rogue agent Jason Bourne. As the game advances, Bourne unlocks special moves to add to his already powerful combat techniques and will have to use them to surpass increasingly challenging enemies. The game features a range of gameplay mechanics, such as fast-paced on-foot pursuit scenes, sniper evasion and rappelling. The stunning animation re-creates Bourne’s perfect mastery of his body, allowing him to perform acrobatic moves while fighting. The Bourne Conspiracy will also be available on console from Sierra Entertainment.

The Spiderwick Chronicles

Based on the upcoming film by Paramount Pictures and Nickelodeon Movies adapted from the best-selling books of the same name, The Spiderwick Chronicles mobile game allows players to experience and explore the visible and invisible worlds of the Spiderwick universe. Players can control up to five different characters, each with special abilities, and use their skills to solve mysterious riddles and to uncover the truth about the enchanted world of Spiderwick. The Spiderwick Chronicles will also be available on console from Sierra Entertainment.

Wordox: Word Snatcher

Vivendi Games Mobile’s first network-connected multiplayer game, Wordox: Word Snatcher is based on the popular Wordox online game which reached a peak of 2.5 million players in 2002. The title brings a competitive strategy twist to the word challenge genre by allowing the stealing of opponent’s letters to score extra points, and features an extended dictionary with more than 100,000 words. Online players can choose the multiplayer version and challenge real players, or the game can be played in single player mode against a virtual player.

Anti-heroes bringing their mix of action and betrayal to a game created specifically for mobile devices, Eidos New Media announced Monday.

The mobile game was ported by Danish developer, Kiloo, with input from Io Interactive, the original development studio for the game.

Kane and Lynch has hit major consoles with mixed reviews lauding its original gameplay but questing its buggy controls and repetitive battle sequences.

Check with your wireless carrier for information of availability.

Kane & Lynch: Dead Men is a cinematic crime drama that tells a raw and gritty tale of two anti-heroes – one a flawed mercenary, the other a medicated psychopath: Forced to embark on a violent and chaotic journey and hating each other every step of the way, Kane & Lynch: Dead Men features a gripping storyline and relentless third-person action.
Spanning 38 action-packed levels across five very different scenarios, Kane and Lynch mobile takes the form of a fast paced action game. Armed with a wealth of firearms, explosives, deadly booby traps and gadgets, the pair must blast a path through each heavily-guarded location, using simple yet effective menu systems to switch between shotguns and assault rifles with ease.