Hackers 'destroy' flight sim site AVSIM

Avsim was one of the largest sites serving the flight sim community

Flight simulator site Avsim has been "destroyed" by malicious hackers.

The site, which launched in 1996, covered all aspects of flight simulation, although its main focus was on Microsoft's Flight Simulator.

The attack took down the site's two servers and the owners had not established an external backup system.

The site's founder, Tom Allensworth, said that the site would be down for the foreseeable future and was unsure if would ever go back up.

"The method of the hack makes recovery difficult, if not impossible, to recover from," Mr Allensworth said in a statement.

"AVSIM is totally offline at this time and we expect to be so for some time to come. We are not able to predict when we will be back online, if we can come back at all. "

Backlash

The attack has shocked the flight sim community, with hundreds of blogs, posts and tweets. One user on the simflight.com website said that "there's a special place in hell for hackers who pull stunts like this".

Speaking to the BBC, Derek Davis, editor of PC Pilot magazine, said: "It looks like 13 years of hard work on Tom's part could have been wiped out.

"Avsim is an important site, because it services the whole community as a source of community developed terrains, skins, and mods - its contribution has been immeasurable," he said.

Mr Allensworth has set up a temporary forum for Avsim users while the future of the site is decided.

On it, he explained the site's backing-up process, although he did not explain why the firm had no external media storage.

"Some have asked whether or not we had back-ups. Yes, we dutifully backed up our servers every day. Unfortunately, we backed up the servers between our two servers.

"The hacker took out both servers, destroying our ability to use one or the other back-up to remedy the situation."

Mr Davis said he thought the site still had a future: "I'm sure Avsim will rise like a phoenix from the ashes and will be bigger and better than before."

By Daniel Emery
Technology reporter, BBC News

OMG... 9min's of Bioshock 2 Footage

Just Enjoy!

More Bioshock 2 Info

WARNER BROS. ENTERTAINMENT UK PARTNERS WITH XBOX TO BRING OSCAR-WINNING PATHÉ MOVIES TO UK XBOX LIVE VIDEO STORE

New partnership will deliver Slumdog Millionaire, The Duchess and many more to Xbox owners

Xbox™, Warner Bros. Entertainment UK and Pathé UK announce a partnership that will bring an extraordinary variety of cutting-edge and locally UK-produced films to Xbox LIVE consumers.

Pathé has been behind a variety of successful films, ranging from The Duchess and Hunger to recent Global smash Slumdog Millionaire. Pathé titles will be available via Xbox at the touch of a button[1], further adding to the wealth of high definition entertainment available on Xbox, directly in the comfort of the living room.

Benefiting from Warner Bros’ existing relationship with Xbox Live, Pathé joins fellow movie industry icons Paramount, MGM Studios and Universal Studios in providing High Definition film content for Xbox LIVE.

“We’re incredibly excited to be offering our Xbox LIVE consumers a number of fantastic Pathé titles ranging from critically-acclaimed indie hits to Oscar-winning smashes”, said Stephen McGill, Director, Xbox and Entertainment, Entertainment and Devices Division, Microsoft Ltd. “Xbox 360 is the ultimate entertainment console in your living room, and by adding the films from another powerhouse film studio to our Xbox LIVE Video Store offering, we have the largest catalogue of High Definition, on-demand entertainment available on any platform.”

Josh Berger, President and MD of Warner Bros. Entertainment UK, said:
“We’re delighted to be working on behalf of Pathé UK, to help bring their exceptional and critically acclaimed movies to ever more film fans around the UK through this partnership with Xbox LIVE.”

Star Wars® The Clone Wars™: Republic Heroes™ Comes to the Rescue This September

Star Wars® The Clone Wars™: Republic Heroes™
Comes to the Rescue This September



London, UK – 11th May, 2009 – Fans of the popular Star Wars: The Clone Wars™ TV series can continue the battle for galactic peace this September in an all-new videogame from LucasArts and Krome Studios. Based on the Cartoon Network series and collaborating directly with Lucasfilm Animation, Star Wars The Clone Wars: Republic Heroes allows players to take up arms on behalf of the noble Galactic Republic, while pursuing the mysterious bounty hunter Cad Bane and combating the all-new Skakoan super villain Kul Teska.



Star Wars The Clone Wars: Republic Heroes allows players to fight as both Jedi Knights and Clone Troopers through over 30 unique missions, all created incorporating the same ground-breaking, stunning visual style from the TV series. Featuring a brand-new storyline, players will get the chance to take part in the key events that lead directly into the highly anticipated second season of Star Wars: The Clone Wars. Jedi characters can slice and dice their way through countless enemies, commandeer droids and show off their combat prowess on foot and in a variety of vehicles. Clone Troopers fire things up with a heavy weapons armament that includes rocket launchers, thermal detonators and even jet packs in levels built specifically to take run-and-gun gameplay to exciting levels.



In addition, the Lucasfilm Animation Singapore games team - in conjunction with The Clone Wars experts at Lucasfilm Animation - is developing an experience on the Nintendo DS™ that takes full advantage of the platform’s touch-screen technology. That version will include an expanded storyline that offers players the chance to take part in key events and battles from season one while also featuring intuitive touch-screen controls for movement, attacks and puzzle solving.



“The Clone Wars franchise has struck a chord with viewers and gamers around the world with its action-packed storyline and memorable heroes,” said Darrell Rodriguez, president of LucasArts. “With its Jedi and Clone Trooper gameplay and all-new storyline, Star Wars The Clone Wars: Republic Heroes takes the franchise into a truly exciting and interactive direction.”



Star Wars The Clone Wars: Republic Heroes will release this September for the Microsoft Xbox 360® video game and entertainment system, PLAYSTATION®3 computer entertainment system, Wii™, PlayStation®2 computer entertainment system, PSP® (PlayStation®Portable) system, Nintendo DS™ and PC.

New Modern Warfare 2 Video

Joystiq has a new video showing in game footage of the highly anticipated Modern Warfare 2.

Check it out!

When Movie Posters Meet Video Games

Movie posters can be an art form. See anything ever done by Drew Struzan. But other times, they're not, and all they're doing is calling out for video game characters to make them better.

Least, that's what the folks at film mag Empire reckon, as they've got a long-running a contest to see how movie posters can be made better by adding characters/people from other mediums.

While there are plenty of great examples from cartoons and sports, it's the recent video game mash-ups we're interested in. Especially that Dhalsim one, because he looks like he's....having....the time of his liiiiifeee....

From - Empire

DJ Hero, Band Hero and Guitar Hero 5 Announced!

Activision just announced a trio of Hero games, DJ, Band and Guitar (v.5)

Press Release:

Guitar Hero(R) Announces Fall Lineup Featuring Groundbreaking DJ Hero(TM) Title and New Guitar Hero(R) 5 and Band Hero(TM) Games

–Innovative DJ Hero Game Expected To Transform How Consumers Engage with Music –New Guitar Hero 5, DJ Hero and Band Hero Expand the Category with Fun-to-Play Experiences and Innovative New Technologies and Features –Fall Slate Delivers Largest Variety of Music and Hottest Artists

SANTA MONICA, Calif., May 7, 2009 /PRNewswire-FirstCall via COMTEX News Network/ — Activision Publishing, Inc. (Nasdaq: ATVI) is set to once again revolutionize how consumers interact with music by releasing three new titles this fall - DJ Hero(TM), Guitar Hero(R) 5 and Band Hero(TM) - that will redefine the company’s popular music gaming platform. The slate will transform the way consumers enjoy and engage with music by offering the largest variety of music genres, innovative technologies and new social entertainment experiences for existing fans and millions of new consumers who previously have not joined Guitar Hero’s global community of fans.

– The company’s groundbreaking DJ Hero expands Guitar Hero’s
signature social gaming to all-new consumers with the addition of
diverse music genres including hip-hop, R&B, Motown, electronica and
dance. Introducing an all-new innovative turntable controller, DJ Hero
transforms players into DJs who rule the club scene by creating original
mixes of popular songs and music from the world’s most exciting
artists and DJs.
– Letting fans continue to fulfill their rock fantasies, Guitar Hero 5
features the hottest rock and roll artists today as well as classic rock
bands and gives players an unprecedented level of control over the way
they play the game with the ability to drop in and out of songs and
change band members, instruments and difficulty levels on the fly.

– The franchises’ first E10+ rated console game, Band Hero delivers
an exciting music collection featuring top-40 hits designed to expand
the appeal to a broad family audience who can play together on the
guitar, drums, bass and microphone and experience a new genre of music.
The game builds upon Guitar Hero’s easy-to-play,
difficult-to-master signature gameplay and allows novice players and
expert fans to join together on their favorite songs.

“Guitar Hero has made music social again and has become one of the most popular ways to experience music,” said Dan Rosensweig, President and Chief Executive Officer of the Guitar Hero franchise. “Today’s fans enjoy a variety of music and are looking for more ways to engage with their favorite songs, artists and fellow fans. These games will let them listen, participate and socialize with music in ways they have never been able to before.”