Syndicate Is Coming Back On February 21

From satellite tracking to GPS to geocaching, the world is addicted to technology. Can a future be far off where external devices are replaced by those implanted internally? Syndicate imagines a future where having brain-implanted bio-chips become the standard of living. But would such technology be used for the greater good or corporate profit? Who will be left behind in this technological revolution? The cult classic game, Syndicate, dared to addressed these ethical and moral questions in 1993. On February 21st, 2012, a re-envisioned Syndicate will usher you back to the dystopian near future plagued by the same uncertainty.

It's the year 2069 and you are a one-man army caught in the midst of a global corporate struggle for control and influence. Surrounded by corruption and deceit, all you have to rely on are your wits and the cutting-edge bio-chip technology implanted in your brain. In this dark and treacherous time, everything and everyone is digitally connected and governments bow to the overwhelming power of multinational conglomerates. The brainwashed populace is victim to the Machiavellian machinations of these Syndicates, casualties of the war for market dominance.

As prototype agent Miles Kilo, you serve at the beck and call of Eurocorp — one of three major global corporations vying for control of America. Armed with the most advanced weaponry of the digital age, you can slow down time, breach the digital world around you, see through walls, and bring down enemies with sophisticated hacking abilities in a thrilling first-person experience combining action and espionage.

Explore the sinister cyberpunk future of Syndicate on February 21st and pre-order through Origin to receive The Executive Package. Usually reserved for the upper echelons of the corporate cabals, you can flaunt your superiority with unique perks for the game’s four-player co-op campaign, solid gold versions of all loadout guns, golden dart vision, and executive gold Syndicate logos during co-op missions.

You can also download an exclusive Syndicate track remixed by DJ Skrillex when you like the Syndicate Facebook page. Keep checking back here for all the latest intel as this sci-fi FPS gets closer to release.

Step into The Sims Social and See What's Shaking

If you haven't had the chance to see why everyone from your roommate to your grandma loves The Sims, now's a great time. You can easily check out the newest exciting addition to the Sims series — The Sims Social — on your Facebook account today.

We know once you get a taste of The Sims, you'll be craving more. So to feed your need, we're offering 50% off The Sims 3 if you install The Sims Social between September 21th and September 27th. Check out The Sims Social Facebook app page for more information.

The Sims Social is a brand new social gaming experience integrating the worldwide success of The Sims with Facebook's massive community. Now, you can interact with your friends in a whole new way, living out a wacky parallel existence though the lives of your Sims. Create custom Sims and set them loose in the world to build relationships, have adventures, and maybe even fall in love — all with your real friends!

Burnout CRASH Is Now Available!

Burnout CRASH! is here and it’s everything you’d hoped it would be: nonstop smashing, bashing, and crashing in a hilarious new party game experience.

The game features three chaotic game modes. In Pile-Up, your goal is to cause a fire then use your precision-driving skills to keep it burning as long as possible. In Road Trip, ram full-speed into a busy intersection and try to trap traffic with the ensuing explosion. In Rush Hour, careen down the road and cause as much damage as you can in 90 seconds.

The award-winning Autolog technology lets you connect, compete, and compare high scores with friends to earn the Master of Disaster crown. Plus, the Xbox LIVE Arcade version of the game is the first from Electronic Arts to feature a game mode designed exclusively for Kinect, with two teams using gestural controls to crash and burn in a party battle!

Burnout CRASH! is available now for $9.99 on PlayStation Network and 800 MS Points on Xbox LIVE Arcade.

Battlefield 3 Brings Home Top Honor From Tokyo Game Show 2011

The Tokyo Game Show (TGS) is one of the marquee events of the videogames industry and this year over 200,000 attendees flocked to the show to see the best games of 2011. Publishers from all over the world displayed hundreds of games, all vying for the attention of the Japanese gaming public. One title stood out of the crowd; Battlefield 3. Already having won critical acclaim at E3 2011 (Best Online Multiplayer Game) and gamescom 2011 (Best of gamescom), reception for Battlefield 3 couldn’t have been better with long lines of gamers stretched around the Battlefield 3 kiosks all hoping to get a chance to experience the all-out warfare, massive destruction and epic scale provided by Battlefield 3’s Frostbite 2 engine.

By the close of TGS 2011, Battlefield 3 had made an indelible impression on the show-going public and the members of the Japan Game Award Committee. They casted their votes for the annual Japan Game Awards and gave Battlefield 3 top honors in the Japan Game Awards 2011 Future Division. The Japan Game Award is a major honor to receive for a western developed title, one that hasn’t been bestowed upon any western developed game in two years. This award is a testament to the vision and game development prowess of the DICE team and their unrelenting drive to constantly push their art to new heights. Congratulations to DICE and the EA Japan team for bringing home this great honor.

45 Distinct Multiplayer Experiences in Battlefield 3

Get your adrenaline pumping with new details about Battlefield 3’s dynamic multiplayer modes. Forget the same old multiplayer experience that you’re used to; EA DICE is bringing a level of customization that redefines what players expect from online play. With the abundance of options available, you can completely transform your multiplayer game the way you want it. Battlefield 3 offers nine expansive multiplayer maps that automatically reconfigure to adapt to the five game modes, resulting in 45 distinct multiplayer experiences for you to choose from.

The classic Team Deathmatch game mode is perfect for dropping into a match quickly if you're looking to tear through the other team, and work to reach the set number of kills without the aid of vehicles. Squad Deathmatch takes it to the next level, pitting four squads of four against each other as they vie for control of an Infantry Fighting Vehicle. This game-changer is capable of keeping your squad supplied and ready to go at all times during combat.

Rush and Squad Rush, the extremely popular objective-based modes from Battlefield: Bad Company 2, return, complete with fine-tuned tweaks based on player feedback. And of course the classic Battlefield game mode, Conquest, is back. Engage in a sprawling fight against another team for control of a set number of flags through careful strategy and tactics. Mastering land, sea, and air vehicles is the key to victory in this definitive game mode.

Want to elevate your multiplayer game even more? Raise the stakes and choose to play in Hardcore Mode to strip out the user interface for a greater degree of immersion. Not interested in vehicles? Click the Infantry Only box in the server browser to leave out vehicles when searching for a game. Check out all the in-depth details of the multiplayer game modes over on the official Battleblog.

This latest entry in the critically acclaimed franchise is due for release on October 25th. Pre-order your copy of Battlefield 3: Limited Edition on Origin today and get ready for the ultimate multiplayer experience.

Business is War in the Revival of Sci-Fi Cult Classic Syndicate

The year is 2069 and the world is dark and insidious. Without government oversight, syndicate competition has grown increasingly cutthroat as they compete for rule over the market place. In America, three major corporations are at the center of the brutal syndicate business — Eurocorp, Cayman Global, and Aspari. Welcome back to the sci-fi world of Syndicate.

In Syndicate, you take on the role of Eurocorp’s latest prototype agent, Miles Kilo. The usual weapons are used against competitors, but in this advanced digital future, everything and everyone are connected. DART 6 bio-chip technology has been implanted into agents' heads, enabling them to slow down time, breach the digital world around them, and bring down enemies with upgradable hacking mechanics.

Starbreeze Studios is creating this unique revival of Syndicate as a savage first-person action shooter. Fast-paced and challenging, the game will deliver an epic adventure to new gamers and fans of the original alike. Familiar weapons and environments return with fresh interpretations and a separate four-player co-op mode will feature missions from the original Syndicate.

Syndicate will be available in early 2012 for PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, and PC.

The Sims Social Surges On Facebook

The Sims Social surpassed 9.3 million daily active users today, making it the second most popular game on  Facebook by daily active users – and growing! It’s a fantastic milestone for the Playfish London studio and The Sims franchise. And the fact that the title has helped EA become the #2 Social Game company in the world is also special – thanks to all our fans for making this possible!

When we founded Playfish in late 2007, well before anyone knew or talked about social games, our vision was to change how the world plays games by creating social and connected experiences between friends using social networks as our platform. We wanted to create experiences where what happens on screen is only part of the game, and where the real driver of game play is social interactions between friends. Two of our most enduring and popular games, Pet Society and Restaurant City, were early big successes with top rankings on the platform thanks to some pioneering early social play features – visiting friends, hiring friends as staff in your restaurant, and helping them - while at the same time competing with them.

The Sims Social has taken a huge leap forward in the evolution of Playfish and social games, not just in higher production values and in bringing one of the most loved game franchises to the platform, but in redefining the meaning of “social” in games and bridging the divide between the real world and the game world for our players.

The Sims Social is in lots of ways the culmination of Playfish’s original vision, and also our choice to partner with EA two years ago.  By combining our technology and passion for social play with the deep creative heritage of The Sims franchise and the insights of its creators, we feel we’ve brought something very special to life. And together with the social titles from our friends at PopCap (we’re huge fans!) and our upcoming launches, we’re really pleased with EA’s social game line-up, and we hope you are too!

So welcome to the world, The Sims Social, and a huge thanks to all those who contributed to making it at the Playfish London studio, EA Play, and the countless others who helped bring the game to life. We’re excited to work with all our fans to figure out how to evolve the game and its features and are thrilled to hear all your ideas of what you’d like to see in the game. Feel free to drop us a comment or contribute to The Sims Social forums. We look forward to hearing from you!

Kristian Segerstrale
GM and Co-Founder of Playfish

Porsche 911 Carrera S To Appear In Need for Speed The Run

If you entered an underground cross-country race with your life on the line, wouldn't you want to race it in a Porsche 911 Carrera S? The most anticipated car of the year has just been revealed in new Need for Speed The Run in-game footage.

Intimidating, elegant, and possibly the most beautiful car of the 2012 series, the Porsche 911 Carrera S is in a class of its own. Built with a longer and wider stance than pervious models, the 911 has a 3.8L flat-six that pumps 400hp out remodeled dual-exhaust tips. This ride is perfect for the most demanding race this country has ever seen, and it's exclusive to the Need for Speed The Run Limited Edition. To ensure you'll be behind the wheel of this beauty on day one, pre-order your copy of the game on Origin.

In Need for Speed The Run you race across the country as Jack, a desperate, debt-ridden driver as you speed through cities like San Francisco and New York City with enemies hot on your heels. Leave the competition in the dust as you race for your life in one of the most exclusive rides out there when the game releases on November 15th.

SSX WANTS YOUR PERSONALIZED BOARD IN-GAME

Do you have a creative flair, an eye for design, and a love of custom snowboards? If so, SSX has an awesome contest for you! They are looking for passionate fans to create their own original board designs with the possibility of them being included in the final game. All you need are some Photoshop skills and a brilliant idea.

To enter the contest, head to the SSX Facebook page, download the instructions and PSD file, create your board, and then upload the completed design after agreeing to the Terms of Service. Pay close attention to the instructional PDF that comes with the PSD file; it has all the info you need to work on your design.

SSX marks the long-awaited return of the pre-eminent snowboarding franchise to consoles. In addition to the over-the-top, exhilarating action the series is known for, players can conquer real-world mountains — courtesy NASA geotagging data — to create an amazing open world experience. The title has also added sweeping social additions like ghosts, Ridernet, and global events supporting up to 100,000 simultaneous players live. And who knows, maybe your custom board will be what everyone is riding. Pre-order your copy on Origin, today!

Release Date For Burnout CRASH! Announced

Ladies and gentlemen, start your engines and prime your explosives! Criterion Games’ newest title, Burnout CRASH!, is bringing a bevy of arcade style smash-em-up vehicle action to Xbox LIVE Arcade and PSN on September 20th!

In Burnout CRASH!, the goal is to cause as much traffic chaos as possible by triggering explosions and destroying everything in sight. Take on three game modes, 18 crash junctions, and loads of unlockables in this reinvention of the fan-favorite crash mode. The game also uses Autolog, which helps you keep up with your friends and rivals with personalized Autolog Challenges. For Kinect owners, there's also an exclusive game mode with 2- to 14-player competition where players use their bodies to steer, explode, and smash their way to high scores.

Do you have what it takes to be the crash master? Find out on September 20th, when Burnout CRASH! arrives on Xbox LIVE Arcade for 800 Microsoft Points and on PSN for $9.99 USD.

BATTLEFIELD 3 REDEFINES VEHICULAR MANSLAUGHTER

An astounding array of vehicles has always been the hallmark of the Battlefield series, and Battlefield 3 is no exception. It boasts 20 vehicles across 12 classes, each one fully customizable. In the latest installment of Battleblog, the DICE team reveals new details of just how expansive the vehicular component of Battlefield 3 is.

Tweaking the performance of your vehicle of choice is simple in execution and complex in options. There are 80 unlockable specialization upgrades that can be equipped to vehicles in one of three customization slots: secondary weapon, gadget, and upgrade. These specializations are unlocked by vehicle class based on the number of kills you score using any vehicle of that class.

In addition to offering the deepest vehicle customization to date in the series, DICE has overhauled vehicular combat to make it a more balanced, intense experience. Too often in the past, tank drivers barreled headlong into combat zones only to abandon their tanks when the going gets tough.

Finally, Battlefield 3 will also introduces armor recovery for vehicles that are only lightly damaged, but fending off the enemy until Engineer support can arrive is sure to result in some truly nail-biting moments. To learn more, be sure to check out the full blog post on the Battlefield site.

Battlefield 3 will release on October 25th in North America. Pre-order your copy on Origin today to receive early access to the open beta in September and other awesome exclusives.