XBox 360 Rally

Speedball II: Brutal Deluxe is coming to XBLA, thanks to the reuniting of the Bitmap Brothers. This game, well over 15 years old, was best known for its Genesis version imo, but has been on the Amiga, CD 32, Acorn Archimedes, IBM-PC, Atari ST, Commodore 64, Sega Mega Drive, Master System, Game Boy and the Game Boy Advance, as well as having other versions of the game appear on the Playstation (Speedball 2100) and the PC. However, for some reason, I still know few people who know of this game, but I believe that will change thanks to the Live Arcade, you all know you try every demo that comes out! Enjoy these very huge screenshots that show how much work has gone into changing this from a Genesis game to the XBLA title, thanks to Empire Interactive, also a full press release after the shots (note: let me emphasis “very huge” when describing these screens)

Speedball II Comes To Xbox Live Arcade

LONDON, ENGLAND, June 11th, 2007 – Empire Interactive, a wholly owned subsidiary of Silverstar Holdings (NASDAQ: SSTR), today announced that it will bring the furious excitement of the classic Speedball II: Brutal Deluxe to the Xbox 360™ video game and entertainment system from Microsoft via Xbox LIVE® Arcade. The highly anticipated title was recently voted one of the most wanted games for Xbox LIVE Arcade in an article by the Computer and Video Games website. Its arrival will please both hard-core fans and new generations of gamers who have yet to experience what some believe is the finest combat sports game ever made.

The Bitmap Brothers classic, Speedball, was first released for the Amiga in 1990 and quickly became a huge success. However it wasn’t until the release of its sequel, Speedball 2: Brutal Deluxe that the title reached new gaming heights and sold over 2 million units. It is still considered by many to be one of the best games of all time. The Xbox LIVE Arcade version is a perfect conversion of Speedball II: Brutal Deluxe but with the addition of an all-new High Definition version, more teams and downloadable content.

This new Xbox LIVE Arcade version of Speedball II will enhance this classic game, whilst still retaining all the classic elements that have made it a firm favorite amongst gamers.

“We are pleased to be bringing this all time classic to Xbox LIVE Arcade,” commented Ian Higgins, CEO Empire Interactive. “With its brutal and addictive gameplay, and the ability to play multiplayer over Xbox LIVE, we are sure this will be the definitive version of Speedball”

“This is another example of Empire updating a classic IP and bringing it to a brand new audience. Double Dragon is our first foray onto Xbox LIVE Arcade, our announcement of Speedball 2 demonstrates our continued intention to bring high quality classic titles to a broader market,” said Clive Kabatznik, CEO of Silverstar Holdings

The developer of Speedball II Brutal Deluxe, The Bitmap Brothers, added “Mike Montgomery, John M Phillips and Mark Coleman are proud to be back together to bring the classic Speedball 2 to the Xbox Live Arcade and introducing on-line play to one of our early Bitmap Brothers titles for the first time.”

Xbox LIVE Arcade is the central destination for Xbox 360 gamers to find, download, try, and buy smaller games on the Xbox 360 console. Xbox LIVE Arcade offers a large catalog of fun, broad-appeal games that can be downloaded via Xbox LIVE.

About Empire Interactive:

Empire Interactive is a leading publisher of interactive entertainment software that has been established for 18 years. Headquartered in the UK, Empire Interactive also has offices in the US, Germany, Italy, France and Spain. The company develops and publishes a varied range of titles for all current platforms in the US, Europe and Asia. Games such as Starsky & Hutch, Big Mutha Truckers, Ford Racing and FlatOut have all enjoyed success across the world. Its budget label, Xplosiv, is one of the fastest growing in Europe. Further information about Empire Interactive and its products can be found at www.empireinteractive.com

About Silverstar Holdings:

Silverstar Holdings Ltd. is a publicly traded company (NASDAQ: SSTR), focusing on acquiring controlling positions in high-growth retail-driven and fee-based electronic game businesses that stand to benefit from the economies of scale generated by the Internet and other technology-related platforms. It currently owns Empire Interactive PLC and Strategy First Inc. as well as a stake in Magnolia Broadband.

Strategy First Inc. is a leading developer and worldwide publisher of entertainment software for the PC. Magnolia Broadband is a fabless semiconductor company and innovator of radio frequency (RF) solutions for the cellular industry.

About The Bitmap Brothers

Originally Founded in 1987, The Bitmap Brothers are considered by many to be the original ‘rock stars’ of computer game development: a small but highly successful development team with a history of creating unique, critically and commercially acclaimed IP across a number of popular platforms. www.bitmap-brothers.co.uk

—

, , , , , ,