Console Digest

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Harmonix and MTV Games announced today the addition of one of the most influential pioneers of rock and roll, Roy Orbison, to the Rock Band® Music Store catalog of downloadable content. Grammy Award-winning Roy Orbison was a singer, songwriter and performer whose distinctive sound scored him an astounding nine Top 10 hits in four years in the early 1960s. Orbison’s historic career began in the 1950s and saw a huge resurgence in the late 1980s, when he became a prominent influence on artists like Bruce Springsteen, Elvis Costello, Bono, k. d. lang and Traveling Wilburys.

The “Roy Orbison Pack 01” will include “Oh, Pretty Woman,” “Ooby Dooby,” “In Dreams,” Claudette,” “Mean Woman Blues” and “You Got It.” All six songs will be available for download as individual tracks as well. These six songs featured are hits from Orbison’s incredible legacy of albums including the recently released definitive box set Roy Orbison: The Soul of Rock And Roll (2008) which contains 107 recordings spanning Orbison’s entire career.

“When I was a kid, my world evolved around a black vinyl record,” said Barbara Orbison. “How times have changed! Rock Band and Harmonix have given us a new way to experience music and now everyone can belong to a band. How much more fun could you have, than to play the opening riff of Oh Pretty Woman and try to sing like Roy Orbison?”

These tracks will be available starting January 6, 2009, for the Xbox_360® video game and entertainment system from Microsoft and January 15, 2009 for PLAYSTATION®3 computer entertainment system. Each individual track will be available for $1.99 (160 Microsoft Points) and $9.99 (800 Microsoft Points) for the 6-pack.

Release Date: Tuesday, January 6, 2009 (Xbox LIVE Marketplace for Xbox 360)

Thursday, January 15, 2009 (PlayStation®Store)

Tracks: (Click on track to view music video)

1. “Claudette”
2. “In Dreams”
3. “Mean Woman Blues”
4. “Oh, Pretty Woman”
5. “Ooby Dooby”
6. “You Got It”
(All tracks are original master recordings)

Price: $1.99 (160 Microsoft Points for Xbox 360) per track
$9.99 (800 Microsoft Points for Xbox 360) for the 6-pack

Locations: Xbox LIVE Marketplace for Xbox 360 and PlayStation®Network

** Dates for Rock Band game tracks are tentative and subject to change **

Rock Band 2 is available now for Xbox 360, PLAYSTATION 3 and PlayStation 2 systems and the Wii system. The Xbox 360 and PLAYSTATION 3 versions support all previously downloaded content. The groundbreaking music platform that forever changed the face of music video games is committed to taking gaming to the next level with the evolution of the franchise.

There are now more than 500 tracks available to date via disc and download purchase (complete list of tracks at www.rockband.com/music). Rock Band continues to satisfy music fans’ and gamers’ voracious appetite for rock with more than 30 million paid downloads since its launch on November 20, 2007. The Rock Band Music Store allows players to preview and purchase downloadable individual music tracks and packs from the vast selection of offerings available to date without ever leaving the game as they build their own custom Rock Band library.

Rock Band and Rock Band 2 allow online play and features that expand the boundaries of music gaming. Rock Band downloadable content is playable and integrated into setlists in all game modes. In order to play downloadable content for head-to-head matches or multiplayer online, all players must own the same downloadable track. Downloadable content for Xbox 360 is available for purchase via Xbox LIVE® Marketplace for Xbox 360 using Microsoft Points and is downloaded directly to the hard drive of Xbox 360. Downloadable content for the PLAYSTATION 3 system’s version of Rock Band is available for purchase on the PlayStation®Store through the free PlayStation®Network and is downloaded directly to PLAYSTATION 3 system’s built in hard drive.

Rock Band and Rock Band 2 are rated “T” for Teen (lyrics, suggestive themes) by the ESRB.
For more information on Rock Band 2 and Harmonix Music Systems please visit www.rockband.com and www.harmonixmusic.com

Crash Commando, a PS3 title exclusively for download on PLAYSTATION Network, is a side scrolling multiplayer shooter game pitting two arch-enemy commando factions - the Grunts and the Jarheads - against each other in an all-out fight for world supremacy. Developed by EPOS Game Studios, Crash Commando is a fast-paced, humorous multiplayer game with over-the-top, slap-stick action that features exaggerated gore and effects. Combining the thrill of frenzied multiplayer combat with the straightforward nature of a classic side-scrolling platform title, Crash Commando is accessible to all players and it is the perfect combination of modern, sophisticated technology and traditional gameplay values.

The player controls a commando with a range of weapons and other equipment at his disposal, including a jetpack, C4, jeeps and tanks. Each map consists of two gameplay layers the player can seamlessly move between via portals in the environment. In Crash Commando, action, mayhem, frenzy and turmoil take center stage as particles, flames, explosions and bodies controlled by rag-doll physics insure there is never a dull moment. With a host of both multiplayer and single player modes included, players can enjoy Crash Commando either on or offline.

KEY FEATURES

• Fun and Frenzied Multiplayer Action – The hilarious action never slows with up to 12 players battling on a map simultaneously, either online or offline with BOTs.
• Weapons and Explosives Galore – Commandos have an array of weapons to choose from with machine guns, shotguns, rocket launchers, C4, mines and more. Players can jump into an array of controllable vehicles such as jeeps and tanks, to deal even more damage.
• Single Player and Multiplayer Modes – Crash Commando features multiplayer modes like Death Match and team-based game modes as well as single player modes like Boot Camp and custom games versus AI-controlled BOTs.
• Player Profiles – A Duty Records Award system, along with Player Rankings, Trophy Support and online Leaderboards, will track player stats and accomplishments.

Publisher: Sony Computer Entertainment America Inc. (SCEA)
Developer: EPOS Game Studios
Platform: PLAYSTATION®3 (PS3™) via PLAYSTATION®Network
Genre: Side Scrolling Multiplayer Shooter
Players: 1-12 players (2-12 players online simultaneously)
Release: TBA
Rating: “T” For Teen

Travis Barker Encore Performance Showcases Diverse Music Genres

Country Superstars Rascal Flatts, Brad Paisley and Brooks & Dunn Make Guitar Hero^® Debuts

British Multi-Platinum Selling Rockers Oasis Bring Full 2008 Album ‘Dig Out Your Soul’

Building upon the extensive variety of chart-topping hits that span multiple genres of music available to Guitar Hero fans, Activision Publishing, Inc. (Nasdaq: ATVI) will release over 20 party-rocking anthems as downloadable content for Guitar Hero^® World Tour throughout January 2009.

Before fans ring in the New Year, additional downloadable content for Guitar Hero World Tour from hard rock bands Hinder, Nickelback and Rev Theory, will be available on December 23rd. Hinder’s first single “Use Me,” from their recently released album Take It to the Limit, is joined by Nickelback’s “Because of You” and Rev Theory’s “Light it Up.”

Further diversifying the catalogue of songs available for download for Guitar Hero World Tour is the debut of the Country Rock Track Pack featuring Rascal Flatts “Me and My Gang,” plus GRAMMY^® Award winning artists Brad Paisley’s “Ticks” and Brooks & Dunn’s “Hillbilly Deluxe.” Country music fans can rock out starting on January 8th.

World-renowned drummer Travis Barker, whose likeness appears in Guitar Hero World Tour, is returning to the Guitar Hero stage on January 15th for an encore with a three-song Track Pack illustrating his talents across various styles of music. Two of the tracks, “What’s My Age Again” and “Lycanthrope,” are from his work as part of blink-182 and +44 respectively. Completing the Track Pack is his solo-project remixing Flo Rida’s smash-hit “Low.”

Following multiple stops around the world and further expanding the Guitar Hero global music library, Guitar Hero World Tour makes a trip down under on January 22nd with three of the biggest Australian bands of all-time. Silverchair makes their debut appearance in the Guitar Hero franchise with their 1995 hit “Tomorrow.” Rounding out the Track Pack is the GRAMMY Award winning Wolfmother with “Dimension” and The Vines with their hit “Outtathaway!”

After making a successful splash into Guitar Hero World Tour downloadable content with three singles off their critically acclaimed Dig Out Your Soul album, gamers will have the opportunity to shred, drum and wail away to the full album from beloved, multi-platinum UK rock band, Oasis, in its entirety on January 29th. Joining “Bag it Up,” “Waiting for the Rapture” and “The Shock of the Lightning” are “The Turning,” “I’m Outta Time,” “(Get Off Your) High Horse Lady,” “Falling Down,” “To Be Where There’s Life,” “Ain’t Got Nothin,” “The Nature of Reality” and “Soldier On.”

The Oasis Album will be available on Xbox LIVE^® Marketplace for the Xbox 360^® video game and entertainment system from Microsoft for 1520 Microsoft Points and on the PlayStation^®Store for the PLAYSTATION^®3 computer entertainment system for $18.99. The Track Packs will be released for Xbox 360 for 440 Microsoft Points and PLAYSTATION 3 system for $5.49. The songs on the Oasis Album and in each Track Pack will be released as downloadable singles for Xbox 360 for 160 Microsoft Points, PLAYSTATION 3 system for $1.99 and Wii^TM for 200 Wii Points.

Guitar Hero World Tour transforms music gaming by expanding Guitar Hero’s signature guitar gameplay into a cooperative band experience that combines the most advanced wireless controllers with new revolutionary online* and offline gameplay modes including Band Career and 8-player “Battle of the Bands,” which allows two full bands to compete head-to-head online. The game features a slick newly redesigned guitar controller, drum kit controller and a wired microphone, as well as an innovative Music Studio music creator that lets players compose, record, edit and share their own rock ‘n’ roll anthems. Music creators are also able to share their recordings with their friends online through GHTunes(SM) where other gamers can download and play an endless supply of unique creations.

Guitar Hero World Tour is now available for Xbox 360, PLAYSTATION 3 computer entertainment system, the Wii home video game system from Nintendo and the PlayStation^®2 computer entertainment system. The game is rated “T” for Teen by the ESRB. For more information on Guitar Hero World Tour, please visit worldtour.guitarhero.com/.