Newsbriefs: Lara's Anniversary, Elephant Retail, Stranglehold Contest

Author: by Staff

[UPDATED: 2:40pm PST] Today's regularly updated newsbriefs include a release date for Eidos' Tomb Raider: Anniversary remix, Elephant Entertainment casual games seeing retail release in May, and Midway and MySpace hosting a John Woo-style short film contest as it prepares Stranglehold for release. - British publisher/developer Eidos has announced that it's upcoming Tomb Raider: Anniversary, a re-imagining of the original Core-developed Tomb Raider, will ship for the PlayStation 2 and PC on June 5 in North America. The game will ship for the PSP “shortly thereafter.” Tomb Raider: Anniversary is being developed by Crystal Dynamics using an advanced version of the engine used for Tomb Raider: Legend. According to Eidos officials, the new technology has allowed “all of the nostalgic environments from the original adventure to be envisioned on a much grander scale.” According to Eidos, the Tomb Raider franchise has sold “over seven million copies worldwide.” Says Matt Gorman, Eidos' director of marketing, “The original Tomb Raider made Lara Croft into the digital icon that she is today...Tomb Raider: Anniversary is our way of paying tribute to Lara Croft and the history of the franchise by exploring the roots of what made the Tomb Raider game successful.” - Officials from casual game publisher and distributor Oberon Media and Elephant Entertainment (War Rock) have jointly announced plans to release three popular online PC casual games through North American retail channels, including Dream Day Wedding, Magic Match: The Genie's Journey, and Ciao Bella. The trio of games have gone gold, and are expected to ship in early May. - In the run up to the upcoming summer release of Midway's next-gen action game Stranglehold, the company has announced a new video submission contest in association with John Woo and his video game production company, Tiger Hill Entertainment, Spike TV and Fox Interactive Media. The 'Stranglehold’s True to John Woo Short Film Contest' will be hosted on the popular community blog site MySpace, and promoted across other Fox Interactive Media properties including major consumer website IGN. The contest will debut on April 30 and run until June 25, and asks contestants to create “the most authentic John Woo-style short film.” The grand prize winner will receive $25,000, a trip for two to Midway’s Chicago studios to meet developers and tape an interview for Spike TV, the chance to personally premiere the short film on Spike TV, an authentic Hard Boiled movie poster autographed by John Woo, an Amp’d mobile phone with six months’ service, and a copy of Stranglehold.. Additionally, the films of ten finalists are expected to be posted on MySpace, with user voting determining a second “audience choice” winner, who will receive prizes including $1000, an Amp’d mobile phone with six months’ service, a Hard Boiled movie poster autographed by John Woo and a copy of the game as well. For more information on the contest, visit the official website. - The latest updates on Gamasutra sister alt.gaming weblog GameSetWatch include a look at the effect of the animated series Ideon on gaming, the release of official Katamari Damacy wallpapers, and indie game Toribash's presence in the online marketplace. - The latest updates on Gamasutra sister site Serious Games Source include an educational serious game designed to teach students about William Shakespeare. - The latest updates on Gamasutra sister site Game Career Guide include both Midway and Rapid Reality being announced as judges for the AiO Scholarship, and a new feature covering potential issues with designing film to video game crossovers. - Also updated today: the latest Gamasutra job postings, including openings from Activision, Concrete Games, Destineer, Forterra Systems, Kush Games, NCsoft, Rainbow Studios, Sucker Punch Productions, Vigil Games, and YAGER Develpment.