Use The Force With Xbox360 Kinect

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KINECT FOR XBOX 360 – TRANSFORMING FAMILY TIME IN THE LIVING ROOM
Feel the force as a Jedi and explore the magical world of Pixar with Kinect for Xbox 360

Ever dreamt of becoming a Jedi and battling with Darth Vader in your living room? Or joining Woody from Toy Story in a fast paced adventure in your own home? Soon these dreams will become a reality with Kinect for Xbox 360 and two highly anticipated partnerships with Disney·Pixar and Star Wars, which will see these iconic brands come to life in fun and innovative ways for families to enjoy in the home.

Exciting new games such as “Kinect Star Wars ™” and “Kinect Rush: A Disney·Pixar Adventure”, will give both parents and kids the chance to jump in and out of the fun with no controller required. The power of Kinect places you in the Star Wars Universe to live out the ultimate Jedi fantasy. Stunning visuals and graphics transport you into many of the worlds in the movies where you can train to be a Jedi, pilot iconic ships and Speeder Bikes, race Pods, dance for Jabba the Hutt and much more.

In “Kinect Rush: A Disney·Pixar Adventure”, Kinect transforms you into a unique character to help your Pixar friends and dive into five exciting movie worlds to discover hidden secrets and solve puzzles. Become a superspy in “Cars”, save the day as a robot in “Toy Story”, adventure through Paris as a clever rat in “Ratatouille”, stop the Omnidroid as a superhero in “The Incredibles”, and help Karl as an intrepid Wilderness Explorer in “UP”.

In addition to these titles, Kinect for Xbox 360 is also home to the best and broadest selection of games and experiences for the whole family to enjoy including “Double Fine Happy Action Theatre”, “Kinect: Disneyland Adventures” and the “Kinectimals” franchise.

Parents and caregivers will also be assured by the Family Settings provided by Xbox 360. These offer tools and resources to help them decide who their children can interact with online, what video games can be played and for how long, and what movies can be watched etc. to ensure safer and healthier gaming habits.

Kinect for Xbox 360 is a great value for the whole family. The all-in-one Xbox 360 4GB Console with Kinect includes the new Xbox 360 4GB console, Kinect sensor and “Kinect Adventures,” priced at ERP €299. Or for those who have an Xbox 360 console1 at home, the stand-alone Kinect for Xbox 360, priced at ERP €149.99, includes the Kinect sensor and “Kinect Adventures,” and works with the 45 million Xbox 360 consoles currently in homes worldwide.

Smirnoff's St. Patrick's Day Cocktail

Chances are when it comes to March 17th most people will reach for a pint of Guinness or even a snifter of Irish Whiskey to celebrate St. Patrick. If, however, a pint or straight short don't tickle your fancy, Smirnoff are on hand with their St. Patrick’s Day cocktail, the Smirnoff Irish Shamrock. This zesty cocktail is crafted using Smirnoff vodka infused with natural lime flavours and muddled with sugar cane syrup and fresh limes.

Jo Gibson, Smirnoff Brand Manager for Western Europe said, “Smirnoff Irish Shamrock is the ideal cocktail for those wanting to celebrate both St. Patrick’s Day and the onset of spring. Designed to tickle the taste buds, it’s easy to make and tastes great”.


Smirnoff Irish Shamrock
Ingredients
Smirnoff Lime 50ml
Limes 1 chopped (16 pieces)
Sugar cane syrup 20ml

Method
1. Muddle limes & sugar cane syrup in base of highball glass
2. Fill glass with crushed ice
3. Add vodka stir thoroughly
4. Retop with crushed ice and garnish with lime wedge & straw

PopCap Launches Solitaire Blitz

This week, PopCap Games announced the launch of Solitaire Blitz, their social twist on one of the world’s most popular card games. The aquatically themed social card game debuted in February through a gradual beta launch before becoming available to the entire Facebook user base four days ago.

“We’ve taken the world’s most well-known card game and created an exciting new social version using PopCap’s incredibly popular time-based Blitz mechanic made famous by Bejeweled Blitz and Zuma Blitz,” said Scott Willoughby, marketing manager for PopCap Games. “We’ve evolved a traditionally solitary pastime into a friendly, shared experience that’s fun for all ages.”

PopCap Games is a leading developer, publisher and operator of video games. Based in Seattle, Washington, PopCap was founded in 2000, was acquired by Electronic Arts in 2011, and has a worldwide staff of more than 600 people in Seattle, San Francisco, Vancouver, B.C., Dublin, Seoul, Shanghai and Tokyo. PopCap's games have been downloaded over 1.5 billion times by consumers worldwide, and its flagship franchise, Bejeweled, has sold more than 50 million units.

Become A Character in Uncharted 3: Drake’s Deception

Sony is offering the chance for one lucky Irish person to be a part of gaming history and create their own character in Uncharted 3: Drake’s Deception for PlayStation3.

In 'Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception' the game characters are not just animations, they're played by real actors, acting out the scenes in a performance capture studio. Sony is offering the chance to be part of Uncharted history and become a playable game character through a new competition launching this Friday 9th March on the Sony Ireland Facebook fan page - The Uncharted Audition by Sony!

However, not only will the winner get to create their own in-game multi-player character, but they will get to do it in L.A. while also meeting the Naughy Dog Inc. creative team behind the game. The winner will also get the unique opportunity to experience the behind-the-scenes of motion capture.

To win, competition entrants will partake in a series of three challenges to prove they have what is takes to be as good as Nathan Drake.

The three challenges which include:
‘Name like Nathan Drake’, creating a compelling name for themselves as an action hero
‘Move like Nathan Drake’, submitting a video of themselves demonstrating their moves and agility
‘Act like Nathan Drake, recording a voiceover to a muted game scene, testing their creativity and voice acting skills

From across Europe, there will be 10 finalists selected to compete at a live event in L.A, where one lucky winner will be chosen to win the grand prize of a trip to the Naughty Dog Inc. studios to be a part of gaming history and leave their legacy in the

The competition opens this Friday 9th March and closes on Sunday 18th March at 24:00 GMT.

The Appys Launch App of the Month

Today, The Appys announced their new plans for ongoing monthly activity throughout the year. In conjunction with Newstalk Breakfast The Appys will now be running 'App of the Month'.

What this means is that each month they will be appointing a guest judge and asking their App development community to submit their work. Entry will be by the same simple process as The Appys themselves and each monthly winner will be featured on Newstalk Breakfast, www.newstalk.ie, Digital Times and all the Appys and Digital Times Social Media Platforms.

The monthly winners will be also be entered into the main Appys competition and get a specially-engraved App of the Month Trophy.

For more information see here.