Breaking News- Blizzard Entertainment and Lengendary Pictures Sign Sam Raimi To Direct Upcoming WARCRAFT® Movie

Sam Raimi - Director of the Spiderman films and cult film Evil Dead

LOS ANGELES, Calif. – July 22, 2009 — Blizzard Entertainment, Inc. and Legendary Pictures announced today that Sam Raimi has signed on to direct the eagerly-anticipated major motion picture based on Blizzard Entertainment®’s award-winning Warcraft® universe. Raimi has, in the course of his career, clearly demonstrated a genius for developing and adapting existing fictional universes for mainstream audiences while staying true to the spirit of the original content.

Raimi directed the Spider-Man trilogy, which has broken box-office records around the world and garnered five Academy Award® nominations. Known for his imaginative filmmaking style, richly drawn characters and offbeat humor, Raimi wrote and directed the cult classic, The Evil Dead and produced 30 Days Of Night. He most recently wrote and directed the supernatural thriller, Drag Me To Hell.

“At its core, Warcraft is a fantastic, action-packed story,” said Raimi. “I am thrilled to work with such a dynamite production team to bring this project to the big screen.”

Charles Roven’s producing talents were recently seen with last summer’s blockbuster The Dark Knight, which grossed in excess of $1 billion, was nominated for eight Academy Awards® and won two. His body of work also includes the widely acclaimed Batman Begins and the sci-fi classic 12 Monkeys. Roven, with Atlas producing partner Alex Gartner, will be producing with Legendary Pictures CEO Thomas Tull, Legendary’s Chief Creative Officer Jon Jashni, Raimi and Raimi’s producing partner Joshua Donen. Raimi’s partner, Robert Tapert, will be an Executive Producer and Blizzard Entertainment’s Senior Vice President of Creative Development, Chris Metzen, a Co-Producer.

“Partnering with Sam Raimi exemplifies Legendary’s mandate of marrying the highest quality intellectual property to world-class filmmakers” said Legendary’s Tull. “Sam’s passion for ‘Warcraft’ is undeniable and we know that he will create an incredible film worthy of Blizzard’s phenomenal franchise. We look forward to collaborating with our partners at Warner Bros. and continuing our successful relationship with Chuck in bringing this rich new world to the screen.”

“Blizzard Entertainment and Legendary Pictures have a shared vision for this film and we searched at length to find the very best director to bring that vision to life,” said Paul Sams, chief operating officer of Blizzard Entertainment. “From our first conversation with Sam, we could tell he was the perfect choice. Sam knows how to simultaneously satisfy the enthusiasts and the mainstream audience that might be experiencing that content for the first time. We’re looking forward to working with him to achieve that here.”

“Blizzard Entertainment’s Warcraft has become a second home for millions of players and Sam’s experience and talent make him the perfect director for this remarkable and action-packed world,” said Atlas’ Roven. “Alex and I are proud to be working with Sam and re-teaming with our friends at Legendary and Warner Bros.”

The film will fall under Legendary Pictures’ co-production and co-financing deal with Warner Bros. “Warcraft is emblematic of the kind of branded, event films for which our studio is best known. We have enjoyed great success with our partners at Legendary, and this is an incredible opportunity for us to work with Sam on a project that is so eagerly anticipated by so many,” said Jeff Robinov, President, Warner Bros. Pictures Group.

Blizzard Entertainment’s Warcraft universe is a rich fantasy setting that revolves around the epic conflict between the opposing forces of the Horde and the Alliance. Since its debut in 1994, Warcraft has developed a loyal following across the globe, with several bestselling, award-winning PC games and a range of popular licensed products including novels, action figures, apparel, comic books, board games, and more. World of Warcraft®, Blizzard Entertainment’s subscription-based massively multiplayer online role-playing game set in the Warcraft universe, is the most popular game of its kind in the world. Its most recent expansion, Wrath of the Lich King™, is the fastest-selling PC game of all time, with more than 2.8 million copies sold in its first 24 hours of availability and more than 4 million in its first month.

Further details about the upcoming Warcraft movie, including cast and targeted release date, will be revealed as development progresses.

About Blizzard Entertainment, Inc.
Best known for blockbuster hits including World of Warcraft® and the Warcraft®, StarCraft®, and Diablo® series, Blizzard Entertainment, Inc. (www.blizzard.com), a division of Activision Blizzard (NASDAQ: ATVI), is a premier developer and publisher of entertainment software renowned for creating some of the industry’s most critically acclaimed games. Blizzard Entertainment’s track record includes eleven #1-selling games and multiple Game of the Year awards. The company’s online-gaming service, Battle.net®, is one of the largest in the world, with millions of active users.

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-looking Statements: Information in this press release that involves Blizzard Entertainment’s expectations, plans, intentions or strategies regarding the future are forward-looking statements that are not facts and involve a number of risks and uncertainties. Blizzard Entertainment generally uses words such as “outlook,” “will,” “could,” “would,” “might,” “remains,” “to be,” “plans,” “believes,” “may,” “expects,” “intends,” “anticipates,” “estimate,” future,” “plan,” “positioned,” “potential,” “project,” “remain,” “scheduled,” “set to,” “subject to,” “upcoming” and similar expressions to help identify forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause Blizzard Entertainment’s actual future results to differ materially from those expressed in the forward-looking statements set forth in this release include, but are not limited to, sales levels of Blizzard Entertainment’s titles, shifts in consumer spending trends, the impact of the current macroeconomic environment, the seasonal and cyclical nature of the interactive game market, Blizzard Entertainment’s ability to predict consumer preferences among competing hardware platforms (including next-generation hardware), declines in software pricing, product returns and price protection, product delays, retail acceptance of Blizzard Entertainment’s products, adoption rate and availability of new hardware and related software, industry competition, rapid changes in technology and industry standards, protection of proprietary rights, litigation against Blizzard Entertainment, maintenance of relationships with key personnel, customers, vendors and third-party developers, domestic and international economic, financial and political conditions and policies, foreign exchange rates, integration of recent acquisitions and the identification of suitable future acquisition opportunities, Activision Blizzard’s success in integrating the operations of Activision Publishing and Vivendi Games in a timely manner, or at all, and the combined company’s ability to realize the anticipated benefits and synergies of the transaction to the extent, or in the timeframe, anticipated, and the other factors identified in Activision Blizzard’s most recent annual report on Form 10-K and any subsequent quarterly reports on Form 10-Q. The forward-looking statements in this release are based upon information available to Blizzard Entertainment and Activision Blizzard as of the date of this release, and neither Blizzard Entertainment nor Activision Blizzard assumes any obligation to update any such forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements believed to be true when made may ultimately prove to be incorrect. These statements are not guarantees of the future performance of Blizzard Entertainment or Activision Blizzard and are subject to risks, uncertainties and other factors, some of which are beyond its control and may cause actual results to differ materially from current expectations.

Play This game: Left 4 Dead

Left 4 Dead is like being in a Zombie film

editor@playthismag.com                                                         http://www.playthismag.com

Zombie games usually get great reviews (Resident Evil) or flop (Evil Dead: Fist full of boomstick [Regeneration was bad ass though]) all due to how the story line is dropped on it’s user.

Left 4 Dead is just shy of perfection and with some simple updates it could easily have hita perfect score. Left 4 Dead is unlike any other Zombie game as it practically throws you into the middle of four different Zombie film types. Any where from Zombies chasing you through corn fields to a hospital filled with evil reincarnates seeking to eat your flesh.

The replayability of this game is just plain sick unless you can’t deal with the harder difficulties, where some gamers may get fed up and turned off from the game.

Boomer is like the drunk girl you picked up at the bar, he loves to puke on you.

The breakdown: Left 4 Dead

Graphics & Cinamatics:4/5

Sound FX & Music:5/5

Replayability:5/5

Multiplayer:5/5

Achievements: 5/5

Overall: 96% Left 4 Dead receives 5/5 Burritos

Graphics & Cinamatics:

Unfortunately this is the department where Left 4 Dead loses some points. There are some relatively annoying bugs in the game that cause you to become stuck in a position, only to await the next on coming horde of Zombies. When closing a door you can become pinned again an area and some reason you can not shot the door up enough to destroy it and move yourself. There are several other instances like this, but aside from these the graphics are supreme and you can tell the creators put a lot of love into this game.

They go as far as creating a commentator section, where you can go through the game and see what the creators were thinking and how they created it. They went as far as making movie quality lighting and matching music to the situation you are in. The over all graphics of the game are next generation material and look great on HD.

Sound FX & Music:

The true zombie film material is plastered all over this game, which can best been seen in the music and sound effects. The game is impossible to predict on the difficult settings, but sound and music cues help you navigate safely to your destination. All in all the music does a great job of not only helping you stay alive but build suspense and add a creepy feel.

Replayability:

Left 4 Dead is 100 percent replayable as the AI in the game has no set spawn points, spawn times and you can play in various locations. The only major downside is the minimal selection of weapons and there is no chainsaw! The VS mode shakes things up and lets you become the Zombies, which has got to be one of the coolest features to hit a Zombie game.

Multiplayer:

Multiplayer in this game is a must as you can play with up to seven other people in VS mode or three other friends in the regular campaign. The best thing about the online multiplayer… the long since forgotten two players on one console is back! You can play in any mode with you and another person on your console without having to have a second Xbox live account.

The versus mode can be one of the best things to hit zombie games, because it lets you become one of four special zombies to thwart away the survivors. Sadly if you do not use team work and are stuck with relatively inexperienced people, chances are you will not do very well. The basic idea is to wait till the survivors are separated and strike with everything you’ve got.

Achievements:

If you are looking to rack up another 800 achievement points, Left 4 Dead is the game for you. A majority of the points can be achieved relatively quick with the exception of some specialty ones that require a ridiculous amount of game play, if you can put this game down after your points that is.

Overall:

If you are any type of zombie fan this game is almost required. Don’t rent this bad boy it’s surely worth the purchase.

**Editors note

This is one of the most bad ass experiences you will get from a game, forget COD World at War, this game just drop kicked it in the face! -EvO

For Left 4 Dead cheats check out CheatCC.com

Achievements for Left 4 Dead

	Helping Hand	20
	Revive 50 incapacitated Survivors.
	Field Medic	20
	Heal 25 Survivors with a first aid kit.
	Pharm-assist	20
	Give pain pills to 10 Survivors.
	My Bodyguard	15
	Protect any Survivor from an attacking Infected 50 times.
	Dead Stop	10
	Punch a Hunter as he is pouncing.
	Cr0wnd	30
	Kill a Witch with a single headshot.
	Untouchables	30
	No Survivors take damage after contacting the rescue vehicle.
	Drag and Drop	20
	Rescue a Survivor from a Smoker’s tongue before he takes damage.
	Blind Luck	20
	You or another Survivor take no damage after being vomited on by a Boomer.
	Akimbo Assassin	30
	Survive an entire campaign using only pistols.
	Hero Closet	10
	Rescue a Survivor trapped in a closet.
	Hunter Punter	10
	Shove a Hunter off of a pinned and helpless Survivor.
	Tongue Twister	20
	Free yourself from a Smoker who has grabbed you with his tongue.
	No Smoking Section	15
	Kill 10 Smokers as they are pulling helpless Survivors.
	101 Cremations	20
	Set 101 Infected on fire.
	Do Not Disturb	20
	Sneak past all Witches in a campaign without disturbing one.
	Man vs Tank	30
	Single-handedly kill a Tank.
	Tankbusters	20
	Kill a Tank without it dealing any damage to a Survivor.
	Safety First	30
	Play an entire campaign with no Survivors taking friendly fire damage.
	No-one Left Behind	20
	Beat a campaign with all 4 Survivors.
	Unbreakable	30
	Finish a campaign without ever being healed.
	Witch Hunter	20
	Kill a Witch without any Survivor taking damage from her.
	Red Mist	20
	Kill 1000 Infected with a mounted machine gun.
	Pyrotechnician	20
	Blow up 20 Infected in a single explosion.
	Zombie Genocidest	20
	Kill 53,595 Infected.
	Dead Giveaway	10
	Heal a fellow Survivor when your own health is below 10.
	Stand Tall	20
	Survive a campaign without being incapacitated.
	Zombicidal Maniac	30
	Survive any campaign on Expert.
	What Are You Trying to Prove?	35
	Survive all campaigns on Expert.
	Nothing Special	30
	Survive a campaign with no Survivors taking damage from Special Infected.
	Burn the Witch	10
	Light a Witch with a Molotov.
	Towering Inferno	10
	Light a Tank with a Molotov.
	Spinal Tap	10
	Kill an Infected with a single blow from behind.
	Stomach Upset	20
	All Survivors complete a campaign without being vomited on.
	Brain Salad	15
	Make 100 headshot kills.
	Jump Shot	20
	Headshot a Hunter while he’s leaping.
	Mercy Killer	15
	Survive the No Mercy campaign.
	Back 2 Help	20
	Leave a safe room to save an incapped teammate and bring them back safely.
	Toll Collector	15
	Survive the Death Toll campaign.
	Dead Baron	15
	Survive the Dead Air campaign.
	Grim Reaper	15
	Survive the Blood Harvest campaign.
	Ground Cover	30
	Save another Survivor from a Special Infected while on the ground.
	Clean Kill	10
	Shove a Boomer and then kill him without him splashing on anyone.
	Big Drag	20
	Drag a Survivor 100 feet with your tongue.
	Chain Smoker	20
	Constrict two Survivors in one life as a Smoker.
	Barf Bagged	20
	Cover four Survivors with Boomer bile at once.
	Double Jump	20
	Pounce two different Survivors in one life as a Hunter.
	All 4 Dead	30
	Kill all four Survivors in one life while playing as a Tank.
	Dead Wreckening	20
	Dole out 5000 total Survivor damage as a Special Infected.
	Lamb 2 Slaughter	20
	As an Infected, incap a Survivor who has entered and left a safe room.

-Source http://www.xbox360achievements.org