A new game, X-Life games, has been heralded as the new era in encouraging cultural exchanges between Arabic, Persian, and English speaking cultures. It demystifies American culture and breaks down barriers that impede mutual understanding. Leveraging the latest in mobile technology, X-Life users in the Middle East and Gulf region will be introduced to American culture in a non-threatening and constructive manner.

“X-Life, the game, is a series of interrelated adventure modules which explore one idea – what unites us, rather than what divides us,” said Ali Reza Manouchehri, Chief Executive Officer of MetroStar Systems, Inc. “Middle East and the Persian Gulf youth will have the opportunity to experience the dynamism and vitality of American life. X-Life projects the fundamental values that Americans cherish: tolerance, freedom, and respect for cultural and religious differences.”

Prompting users to learn and use skills acquired through everyday experiences, each phase of the game allows the user to apply those skills to improve themselves and the world, all in a mobile application. This concept of cultural bridging embodied in a video game reaches across all generations, especially the current one being raised in an ever sophisticated and technological world.

X-Life Games was created for the public to use free of charge in an effort to bridge cultures. X-Life Games is not a single mobile game but a series of smaller, interrelated adventure modules that explore one theme. The players of this unique game will be able to select an avatar, earn and spend the game’s virtual currency, and progress through their X-Life while learning English through mobile handsets.

Reflections can be made of the user’s life path, including how they would have handled careers, family, and other phases of life. In each game, the player gets to “try on” a new X-Life and rise to the top of that game’s featured profession. X-Life Games is available now via download here.

(Source) Press

Major Nelson has recently announced on his blog that the Ninja Gaiden II Mission Mode DLC will be offered on Xbox Live for cheap this week as part of an ongoing Deal of the Week feature.

Originally priced at 800 points, the DLC will be marked down to 560 points for Xbox Live Gold Members netting a savings of 33%, not bad.

Read more about the Ninja Gaiden II Mission Mode DLC after the break. READ ON »

Sure, Ubisoft released the demo for Tom Clancy’s H.A.W.X last month, but PC gamers have been left in the dark with no demo in sight.

Well no more as it was recently announced that the demo for the air-combat Clancy title is now available for download.

Tom Clancy’s H.A.W.X is currently in it’s final stages of development at Ubisoft Romania and will hit shelves for the Xbox 360 and PS3 on March 6th with a PC version coming March 13th.

You can head over to WorthDownloading to snag the demo, here.

Today is Monday, you know what that means, right? New releases for both the Virtual Console and Wiiware thanks to our good friends over at Nintendo.

This week we are graced with Ogre Battle for the Super Nintendo, and Family & Friends Party, developed by Gammick Entertainment.

Sound fun? More info on both of the above mentioned games below:

WiiWare™

Family & Friends Party (Gammick Entertainment, 1-8 players, Rated E for Everyone, 1,000 Wii Points): Have fun with all your friends and family as you take on some very exciting challenges. This is an interactive board game for as many as eight players of all ages. The goal is to be the first to complete a series of challenges. During each turn, a challenge will be played by one or two players per team depending on the type of challenge you’ve been given. (Other players on your team can still help and support you). There are six different “Single” challenges that must be played cooperatively by members of the same team. Family & Friends Party can also suggest “Versus” challenges, which must be played competitively by all teams at the same time.

Virtual Console™

Ogre Battle™: The March of the Black Queen™ (Super NES™, 1 player, Rated E for Everyone, 800 Wii Points): It’s up to you to defeat the Empire. It’s been nearly a quarter of a century since the Zetegenian Empire first conquered the Kingdoms of Zenobia with a wrath of fear and bloodshed. You are the leader of a band of rebels who’ve fought to preserve the last shred of honor in this desperate time of treachery. Manage the ranks of a full-blown rebel army, complete with hundreds of characters, magic items, weapons and mystical Tarot cards. You must succeed in ousting the evil usurpers-your fate, and that of the entire population, depends on it.

Read (Nintendo)

It was recently announced that the Tenchu series’ latest offering on the PSP, Tenchu: Shadow Assassins, will hit store shelves sometime this month.

If you didn’t know, Tenchu: Shadow Assassins was originally released on the Wii which makes the PSP game a port.

Oh well, this might actually give me a reason to blow the dust off my PSP for once.

Read (Joystiq)

The Internet has recently gotten word that major toy retailer, Toys ‘R’ Us, is testing a new campaign that will allow game owners to trade in their games for store credit.

Apparently, if you bring a game in its original case, with it’s original artwork and player’s manual, and it’s not cracked or rated Adults Only, you will be able to “sell” it to Toys ‘R’ Us in return for store credit.

This campaign was first noticed at a Toys ‘R’ Us in Nanuet, NY so all of the surrounding stores will probably get the same treatment. Look out Game Stop, Toys ‘R’ Us is comin’ for you.

Read (CheapAssGamer)

Sony is taking an example from Microsoft and incorporating a lot of their console features into the website. Recently announced is Playstation.com’s upcoming ability to display achievements trophies one has collected during their PS3 career.

This isn’t the end of the website’s updated functionality though as after this update is released another one will be released at an unannounced time that will allow you “comapre and sort trophies in new ways”.

Read (Playstation Blog)

As fond of their vices as many adults are, they often seem just as fond of taking measures to ensure that children are protected from any influence that seems harmful. There’s a campaign underway intended to restrict smoking to R rated movies with the overall philosophy that only adults should see things that only adults can do.

Unfortunately most adults seem to forget that for many children the appeal of certain things is that they’re restricted, only for adults. When your parents rented a movie that they wouldn’t let you watch, you snuck downstairs while you were asleep and watched it yourself. It might have given you nightmares for a week, but it was worth the thrill.

A study of 310 Dutch children showed that kids between seven and seventeen were more likely to rate mature rated games as desirable. When shown a list of fictional games and their descriptions and asked to rate how desirable they found them the games with more mature content were rated more desirable.

This ‘forbidden fruit’ effect could be because the game has mature content or because games intended for mature audiences have to satisfy the desires and standards of adult audiences. While younger children are more easily satisfied, those who have been gaming for a long time are more likely to want the full, complex experiences intended for adults. Most games aimed at children are poorly crafted, so a more valid study could have given false review scores as well, designed to see if a game is as desirable with a lower rating when compared with less mature games with superior scores.

Buzz has been circulating the internet regardling seemingly leaked details for the PSP’s latest iteration, the PSP-4000.

Apparently, Eurogamer has spoken to an anonymous development source “close to Sony” that has given the following details.

The PSP-4000 will have a sliding screen, similar to that of the PSP-3000, there will be no UMD drive and certain games only utilizing the shoulder buttons will be playable when the screen is slid closed.

What do you think? Is this source to be believed? Let’s just hope it resembles the picture above which has been around for way too long now.

This weeks Rock Band release won’t be garnered towards any specific console as it was announced that it will hit all 3 major consoles. Yes, this does mean that it will be coming to Wii; no console prejudice whatsoever.

Anyways, Steve Ray Vaughan’s Texas Flood, along with a few No Doubt singles will be hitting all 3 consoles, the Wii get’s special treatment with a couple Jimmy Eat World songs that the PS3 and Xbox 360 Rock Bands already received:

Stevie Ray Vaughan’s Texas Flood (200 Wii points apiece):

• “Love Struck Baby”
• “Pride and Joy”
• “Texas Flood”
• “Tell Me”
• “Rude Mood”
• “Testify”
• “Mary Had a Little Lamb”
• “Dirty Pool”
• “I’m Cryin”
• “Lenny”

Individual songs (200 Wii points apiece):

• “New” – No Doubt
• “Futures” – Jimmy Eat World
• “Lucky Denver Mint” – Jimmy Eat World
• “Sweetness” – Jimmy Eat World 

Read (Joystiq)