What: Ticket to Ride
When: 6/25/08
How Much: 800MP ($10)

This came out of nowhere, I used to play Ticket to Ride with some family friends all the time on the original board game – so it is pretty awesome to see a board game of my past make its way onto the xbox live arcade.  The downfall to board games is the annoyance of setting up the game, and trying to get friends in you hours to play – both of which are fixed when you put it on the live marketplace.  Give the demo a try if you enjoy some of the other social games on the marketplace (like Catan, or Carcassonne) give it a chance.  I definately am going to give the demo a spin before I leave on vacation this weekend. 

For all you achievement hunters out there – want a peak?  My buddy DaKing has your back , check out the list of 15 achievements for 250 points

Vancouver, Canada (June 23rd, 2008) – This Wednesday, the railway adventure game, ‘Ticket to Ride’, pulls into Xbox Live Arcade. Based on the internationally renowned board game, ‘Ticket to Ride’ is the debut title for Vancouver-based independent publisher, Playful Entertainment. The title is available June 25th, 2008 worldwide for 800 Microsoft points and is rated E for Everyone by ESRB.
 
‘Ticket to Ride’ features simple rules and fast play, promising fun for the whole family. Players plan routes and connect cities across the country in a bid to become the ultimate traveler and earn the most points. ‘Ticket to Ride’ supports up to five people on Xbox Live as they lay track from coast to coast and every city in between.
 
The game features leaderboards, achievements and multiple levels of AI players to keep the challenges coming. Although the game can be learned in under five minutes, players face strategic and tactical decisions that vary with every turn as they connect distant cities and race to complete the most routes.
 
Playing Ticket to Ride:

• Variable difficulty levels: Either locally or in Xbox LIVE® matches, choose Easy, Medium, or Hard A.I. opponents to challenge your gaming skills.
• Multiplayer: Play with up to three of your friends on a single console, or take on Ranked or Player matches over Xbox LIVE with up to five players.
• Leaderboards and achievements: Post your Xbox LIVE match results to the leaderboards. Follow game stats for each player such as Highest Score, Total Trains Played and their Time Spent Playing. And track your progress with twelve new achievements.
• Camera support: See yourself and your friends during gameplay with Xbox LIVE Vision Camera support

Ticket to Ride is based on the board game by noted game designer Alan R. Moon. Days of Wonder released the game in early 2004, becoming the youngest game publisher to win the world’s most coveted game prize, the German Spiel des Jahres Game of the Year Award. With a following in over 30 countries and availability in 11 languages, the board game has an international following.
 

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click through to read the full official press release to get more details on the game!

SEATTLE, WA. (June 17, 2008) – Now millions of fans of Discovery Channel’s highest rated and Emmy®-nominated series DEADLIEST CATCH can hunt for elusive King and Opilio Crab in the challenging new Deadliest Catch Alaskan Storm video game. The Xbox 360® version of the game is available now at major retailers, with the PC version coming soon.

Deadliest Catch Alaskan Storm was inspired by Sig, Edgar and Norman Hansen – three brothers who have made their living crab fishing on the Bering Sea aboard their family’s fishing vessel, the Northwestern. The Hansen brothers started game development with Liquid Dragon Studios in October 2005.

Authenticity and realism were critical to the Hansen brothers. They invited key development team members to Dutch Harbor, Alaska to personally experience life on the Northwestern. The game’s realism is enhanced with four real Bering Sea harbors and 34,000 miles of real Alaskan coastline created from the United States Geological Survey. In addition, Deadliest Catch Alaskan Storm is the first video game to feature United States Coast Guard vessels and helicopters.

With waves over 40 feet high, Deadliest Catch Alaskan Storm features the best wave effects in a video game to date. In the words of Captain Sig Hansen, “It may not be life or death, but chills went up my spine the first time I saw the Northwestern sink in the game.”

Deadliest Catch Alaskan Storm lets gamers captain their own boat in the frenzied search for King and Opilio crab. Gamers select one of five real crab boats, including the Northwestern, Cornelia Marie and Sea Star – all featured on the series, or create and customize their own boat. Gamers then recruit and manage their own crew from a roster of twenty real crab fishermen. Selecting the wrong boat or recruiting the wrong crew member can mean the difference between landing a Bering Sea jackpot or disaster. The ultimate goal is to return safely each season, upgrade your boat and crew, and attempt to break Captain Sig Hansen and the Northwestern crew’s actual lifetime catch of twenty million pounds.

Features:
· Career Mode (Extremely realistic and challenging simulation for gamers and Deadliest Catch fans
· Missions (Includes United States Coast Guard missions, ice flow navigation)
· Mini-Games (Allows casual gamers to enjoy fun crab boat challenges, including crab boat races and skiff races)
· Five Authentic Crab Boats (including Northwestern and Cornelia Marie)
· Customize Your Own Boat
· 20 Real Fishermen (including Edgar and Norman Hansen, Josh and Jake Harris)
· Five Authentic Captains (including Captains Sig Hansen, Phil Harris and Larry Hendricks)
· 4,500 lines of recorded character dialogue
· 1st Time United States Coast Guard in Video Game
· Captain the 370ft. USCG Cutter Mellon
· Throw-the-Hook Mini-Game
· Skiff Racing Mini-Game
· 34,000 Miles Actual Coastline
· Four real Bering Sea harbors (Akutan, Dutch Harbor, King Cove and St. Paul)
· Virtual tour of the Northwestern crab boat
· 100 exclusive crew videos
· Xbox Live multiplayer for up to eight players

Whether a die-hard fan or someone who has never seen the Discovery Channel series, Deadliest Catch Alaskan Storm is an immersive and challenging experience, putting them at the helm of one the world’s most dangerous jobs– that of a crab boat captain in the icy Bering Sea.