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The Frag Dolls, a professional all-female gaming team recruited by Ubisoft, are thrilled to reveal their newest team member at PAX East, Melonie “Cryptik” McElhannon, along with a brand new class of Cadette interns, who will all make their debut appearance at PAX East this week in Boston.
Known also as “Melonie Mac,” Cryptik has been gaming all of her life and has cultivated a sizeable following among various social media outlets through sharing her passion of gaming with the world. Cryptik is definitely not a stranger to the gaming industry having previously worked at Razer, a gaming peripheral company. With additional accomplishments such as an impressive 2k+ arena rating in World of Warcraft, along with multiple local tournament winnings for Super Smash Brothers Melee and Super Smash Brothers Brawl, Cryptik has always been passionate about competitive gaming and she has the skills to prove it.

“Cryptik has demonstrated a genuine passion for video games, along with having the skill set and experience to really contribute to our team in a big way,” said Amy Brady, co-team captain, of the Frag Dolls.

In addition to acquiring their newest team member, the Frag Dolls have also recruited a new class of girls into their Frag Doll Cadette program, which serves as a year-long internship with Ubisoft and the Frag Dolls. After reviewing countless applications, an in-depth interview process and intense deliberation, Ubisoft and the Frag Dolls have narrowed down a cast of eight pro-level gamers, bloggers, and online media personalities from all over the country.

“By far, this was the most challenging Cadette application process yet,” said Kimberly “Sabre” Weigend, Frag Doll. “A multitude of inspiring and passionate women applied to our Cadette Academy this year, and we are very pleased with the outcome. They’re all very excited make their public debut at PAX East and I know they’re going to rock it!”

For more information about the Frag Dolls or the Cadettes, please visit: www.fragdolls.com

Today, Ubisoft announced that From Dust, a modern God game from visionary creator Eric Chahi, will be available to download in the US on PlayStation Network September 27, 2011.

From Dust – winner of “Best Strategy Game” from the Game Critic’s Awards: Best of E3 – allows players to control the destiny of a primitive tribe against the backdrop of a world in constant evolution. From Dust enables players to interact in one of the most advanced real-time nature simulations, where everything evolves dynamically, offering a constantly renewed experience.

For more information on From Dust, please visit: http://from-dust.ubi.com/from-dust/en-US/home/

Today, during its press conference at the Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3), Ubisoft unveiled the development of Brothers in Arms Furious 4™. Developed by Gearbox™ Software and published by Ubisoft, Brothers in Arms Furious 4 is the latest iteration of the best-selling Brothers in Arms franchise that spins the series in a new direction. The game will be available worldwide for the Xbox 360, the Sony PlayStation 3 and Windows PC in the first half of calendar year 2012.

Set in World War II, Brothers in Arms Furious 4 is a brutal first person shooter that offers an exciting campaign mode playable with up to four players in co-op, as well as an extensive competitive multiplayer mode. The story follows four fierce and fearless warriors chasing the Führer himself. As one of the Furious 4, players will use special weaponry and unexpected combat abilities to fight the greatest threat the world has ever faced: an experimental Nazi army conceived in secret by the Third Reich.

“The Brothers in Arms franchise has been renowned for its gritty direction that has dropped players into the middle of World War II,” said Adam Novickas, U.S. director of marketing at Ubisoft. “With Brothers in Arms Furious 4, Gearbox brings the action to a whole new level filled with unexpected twists and over-the-top battles that are sure to please new players and fans alike.”

For more information on Brothers in Arms Furious 4, please visit: www.brothersinarmsgame.com

Pivotal chapter in the Assassin’s Creed epic franchise launches in November

Today, Ubisoft announced new product details for Assassin’s Creed Revelations, the thrilling fourth installment in the critically acclaimed entertainment franchise that weaves real world history and global conspiracies into an ancient war between Assassins and Templars.

Assassin’s Creed Revelations follows master assassin Ezio Auditore as he walks in the footsteps of his legendary mentor, Altaïr, on a journey to recover five ancient seals that hold the keys to the future of the Assassins brotherhood. It is a perilous path – one that will take Ezio to Constantinople, the heart of the Ottoman Empire, where a growing army of Templars threatens to destabilize the region.

Assassin’s Creed Revelations is set to release on the Xbox 360 video game and entertainment system from Microsoft, the PlayStation®3 computer entertainment system and Windows PC this November.

• Hone the deadly art of assassination – As Ezio Auditore, wield the lethal skills of a wiser, more efficient assassin. Armed with a new arsenal of weapons and abilities including the hookblade, bomb crafting and a heightened Eagle Sense, you can kill with death-dealing proficiency.
• Herald the return of a legend – Assassin’s Creed Revelations features the return of Altaïr as a playable character, the hero of the original Assassin’s Creed.
• Journey to the Constantinople –Explore picturesque settings, from Masyaf, the mountain stronghold of the Assassins during the Third Crusade to the vibrant and exotic Constantinople, the jewel of the Ottoman Empire in the 16th Century. Navigate crowded streets and vistas, through a cauldron of cultures as Constantinople comes to life.
• Meet new players to the Assassins Creed lore –Encounter memorable personalities, including fellow master assassin Yusuf Tazim, Prince Suleiman, destined to become one of the greatest monarchs in history, and Sofia Sorto, a simple woman who vies for Ezio’s heart.
• Test your skills as an assassin against your friends – the acclaimed online multiplayer experience returns, refined and expanded with more modes, more enthralling maps and new characters.

Consumers who pre-order Assassin’s Creed Revelations at a U.S. GameStop location will receive an exclusive Penny Arcade poster. (limited quantities while supplies last.)

Initially launched in 2007, the first three Assassin’s Creed games have sold more than 28 million units worldwide, and the franchise is now established as one of the best-selling series on next generation consoles. Recognized for having some of the richest, most engrossing storytelling in the industry, Assassin’s Creed has transcended video games, branching out into other entertainment experiences including comic books, Facebook games, novels, short films and more.

For more information on Assassin’s Creed, visit: www.assassinscreed.com and www.facebook.com/assassinscreed.

Today, Ubisoft announced that it will kick off E3 with an invitation-only press conference on June 6, 2011 at 2:30 pm PST at the Los Angeles Theatre where attendees will be treated to never-before-seen demonstrations of Ubisoft’s fiscal year 2012 line-up and exclusive new announcements. Following the press conference E3 attendees can view and play Ubisoft titles at the booth located in the South Hall of the Los Angeles Convention Center from June 7-9, 2011. This year’s E3 also marks the start of Ubisoft’s 25th anniversary celebration; the company is celebrating this milestone by delivering its strongest and most diverse brand portfolio to date, with titles spanning all major genres and platforms, including a variety of action adventure and shooter titles, fitness games, online titles and casual games to play with the family.

“Ubisoft has been delivering top-notch entertainment for 25 years, and we’re incredibly grateful for all of our fans,” said Yves Guillemot, chief executive officer at Ubisoft. “We plan for the upcoming years to be just as exciting and full of innovation, and the wide range of creative, fun and unique titles we’re demonstrating at E3 illustrate the stellar talent of our development teams and Ubisoft’s ongoing investment in delivering entertaining and innovative products to consumers.”

High Definition
Already known for its growing collection of blockbuster brands, Ubisoft’s E3 line-up features high definition titles that set the bar for gaming creativity and quality, including: Assassin’s Creed® Revelations, Call of Juarez®: The Cartel, Driver® San Francisco, Rayman Origins and Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon® Future Soldier.

Online
Ubisoft is entering the online games market in earnest, giving customers continuous connections to their favorite games whenever and wherever they want. By offering innovative new online titles, Ubisoft is using this year’s E3 to announce its presence as a key player in the online games space. Titles on display include: From DustTM, Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon® Online, and TrackMania2 Canyon.

Casual
Ubisoft rules the casual market, holding the number one third-party position on Kinect, 3DS and Wii. Ubisoft continues to pioneer on emerging mainstream technologies and creating games with real-life benefits that the whole family can enjoy. Ubisoft’s casual games featured at E3 include: The Adventures of Tintin, MotionSports Adrenaline, RocksmithTM, the upcoming new Raving Rabbids®, Just Dance®, and Your ShapeTM games.

Additionally, during E3 exhibition hours Ubisoft will host an exclusive Rocksmith-branded tour bus outside of the Los Angeles Convention Center. Located in the concourse walkway between the West and South Halls, consumers can hop on the bus to demo the revolutionary new music experience that is the first and only game that plugs into any real guitar.

For fans not attending E3, Ubisoft’s press conference will be streamed live at http://www.uplay.com and http://www.youtube.com/ubisoft. In addition, key elements from Ubisoft’s E3 booth, including exclusive interviews with developers and game trailers, will be available to view online at http://www.youtube.com/ubisoft. For up-to-the-minute E3 news updates from Ubisoft, please visit: http://twitter.com/ubisoft

Those of you following the Facebook site for DXHR, you should be happy, 50% of the phase 1 content has been unlocked already! For those who are interested, head over to http://www.facebook.com/DeusEx and participate! The more people they have doing things, the faster the preview mysteries will be unlocked and more information will be released. Don’t forget to “like” the page!

New Free-to-Play Game Brings Best Qualities of Ghost Recon Franchise Online

Today, Ubisoft announced the development of Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon Online, a new multi-player, third-person, cover-based tactical shooter that will be offered free-to-play online. Ghost Recon Online is developed by Ubisoft Singapore, and offers all the best qualities of the Ghost Recon franchise in a downloadable, dynamic, PC-based online game. Ghost Recon Online launches in closed beta beginning this summer.

With Ghost Recon Online, Ubisoft is delivering the most social, connected and customizable Ghost Recon experience yet. The game offers players the ability to choose between three different classes of Ghost, customize their weapons, deploy cutting-edge military technology, and share intel with their team. Ghost Recon Online also features a rich lobby platform for hosting social and persistent progression features. Ubisoft also will back the game with a full set of services, including regular events and game content updates, customized content based on community feedback, and live support.

The online features complement Ghost Recon Online’s rich graphical environments and maps, which rival the quality of those traditionally seen only in retail games. And while the game is free for anyone to play, players also can purchase premium items and fully personalize their experience.

“Ghost Recon Online takes the best attributes of the Ghost Recon game franchise and brings them online, making the experience of being a Ghost accessible to millions of new players and fans,” said Hugues Ricour, senior producer at Ubisoft. “This game was designed from the start to be a free-to-play experience. Our development teams are dedicated to making Ghost Recon Online a truly unique, top-quality online title.”

Ghost Recon Online is Ubisoft’s latest entrant in the online gaming market and its first shooter to be offered in a free-to-play format. “For Ubisoft, delivering games as a service means offering fans the opportunity to stay connected to their favorite gaming worlds, to participate in fan-based communities and play with millions of peers from around the world.”

“The online market is an exciting new frontier for video games and for gamers,” said Yves Guillemot, chief executive officer at Ubisoft. “With Ghost Recon Online, and other major upcoming projects, Ubisoft is creating online experiences that allow our fans to stay connected to their favorite brands and to continually receive new content and gameplay. This direct link with our fans will allow us to create new and ever better experiences for them.”

Players can sign up for the closed beta and find more information on the game at www.GhostReconOnline.com.

This is just a teaser of what’s in development at Ubisoft for the PS3, Wii and 360

Today Ubisoft announced an environmental initiative to eliminate paper game manuals, replacing them with an in-game digital manual for all titles on PlayStation 3 (PS3) and Xbox 360. The program, the first initiative of its kind in the video game industry, launches worldwide with Shaun White Skateboarding this holiday 2010.

Ubisoft’s digital game manuals will provide multiple benefits for the player and the environment. Including the game manual directly in the game will offer the player easier and more intuitive access to game information, as well as allow Ubisoft to provide gamers with a more robust manual. Ubisoft internal data shows that producing one ton of paper used in Ubisoft’s game manuals consumes an average of two tons of wood from 13 trees, with a net energy of 28 million BTU’s (equivalent to average heating and energy for one home/year), greenhouse gases equivalent of over 6,000 lbs of CO2, and wastewater of almost 15,000 gallons.

“It’s pretty cool that Ubisoft is making a conscious effort to go green with its new video game packaging,” commented Olympic Gold Medalist Shaun White. “I’m excited for my new skateboarding game to come out and stoked that it will be the very first Ubisoft game to be part of their green packaging initiatives.”

In addition to Ubisoft’s efforts to decrease paper usage in its game packaging, Ubisoft has partnered with Technimark, Inc. to release the entertainment industry’s most environmentally-responsible DVD case for all of its future PC titles in North America. The 100 percent-recycled polypropylene “ecoTech” DVD case will make its debut with Ubisoft’s Tom Clancy’s Splinter Cell Conviction PC video game on April 27, 2010. Ubisoft has featured digital game manuals in its PC titles distributed in North America since March 2010.

“Ubisoft is often recognized for making great games, but it’s a special privilege to be the industry leader at saving trees,” said Laurent Detoc, president of Ubisoft North America. “Eco-friendly initiatives are important to the global community and introducing in-game digital manuals on Xbox 360 and PS3 is just the latest example of Ubisoft’s ongoing commitment to being a more environmentally conscious company.”

Ubisoft’s Paris Studio to Deliver a New Chapter in the Acclaimed Franchise to Debut Fall 2010

Today Ubisoft revealed new details for Tom Clancy™’s Ghost Recon: Future Soldier™ for the Xbox 360, PS3, and Windows PC. Developed by the award-winning team behind Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon Advanced Warfighter® and Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon Advanced Warfighter® 2, the game will equip players with the world’s hottest future combat systems, inspired by existing prototypes, and unleash them on the battlefield of tomorrow. Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon: Future Soldier is scheduled to ship Fall 2010.

“The Ghost Recon franchise set the standard for the next-generation gaming experience,” said Tony Key, senior vice president of sales and marketing at Ubisoft. “With Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon: Future Soldier, Ubisoft is amplifying the core values of the series – the sophisticated technology, weaponry, graphics, story and online gameplay – with the production values of a Hollywood blockbuster to deliver a stunning package that will make players truly feel like the elite soldier of tomorrow.”

For players who can’t wait until fall to get their hands on Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon: Future Soldier, Ubisoft is delivering a sneak peek this summer with Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon: Future Soldier’s Multiplayer Beta. The exclusive beta invitation, available for a limited time, will be included with Tom Clancy’s Splinter Cell Conviction™. Tom Clancy’s Splinter Cell Conviction will be hitting stores on April 13th in North America, April 16th in Europe and April 28th in Japan, and is exclusively available for Xbox 360.

About the Game

As a member of the elite Ghost Recon, you are among the few who possess the power, the adaptability, and the cognitive fortitude of the future soldier. Specialized in every area of combat, equipped for survival, and trained in absolute discretion, you are entrusted with the missions no other soldier can handle. Armed to the teeth with an arsenal of real-world high-tech weaponry only in prototype today, you are an F-16 on legs, trained to lock on to your objective even in the world’s most complex, high-risk warzones.

Experience the Future of War

• The Ghosts pack the latest and best high-tech military equipment, inspired by actual prototypes.

• Blend into any environment with mind-bending optical camouflage.

• An exoskeleton enhances the Ghosts’ physical abilities, allowing them to run, leap, slide and kick farther & faster than any soldier on the field today.

• Unparalleled physicality and lethal expertise in melee close combat are now at your disposal. Control all-new heavily armed unmanned ground and air combat drones.

• Unleash large-radius firepower with a personal mortar capable of firing multiple guided rockets simultaneously.

Natural Cooperation

• Instantly coordinate combat against 360° threats: link-up with your Ghost teammates in a formidable formation at the push of a button.

• Move-and-shoot-as-one with your friends or AI teammates with no training and no complex orders system.

• Benefit from your teammates’ high-tech abilities and combine them to unleash the power of an army at the pull of your trigger.

Epic Solo and Co-op Campaign!

• Join the Ghosts as Kozak, a fresh recruit whose elite unit is the United State’s best and only means of retaliation when a nationalist coup unseats Russia’s legitimate president

• Experience multiple aspects of the war from the unique perspectives of a high-level bodyguard, an engineer, a civilian and more.

• Play the single- or split-screen cooperative campaign across multiple theatres as the shadow of global conflict creeps across Northern Europe and beyond.

Fast-Paced, Addictive Multiplayer Mode

• Link-up for heated 8 vs. 8 adversarial matches and combine the four balanced class abilities, plus drones and individual gear.

• Seamless ranking progression in Single, Co-op and Adversarial modes: unlock multiple rewards for your Ghost or your Clan.

For ongoing updates about the game, please visit: www.GhostRecon.com