2K Sports has announced that the cover athlete for NBA 2K9 will be revealed through a 30 second TV spot scheduled to air during the NBA Countdown pre-game show for Game One of the 2008 NBA Finals, June 5 on ABC.

As part of the event, the publisher has set up a community website where registered participants can register and predict the cover athlete for the game from a roster of 16 NBA candidates. Those who predict correctly will be entered into a special drawing for the opportunity to win exclusive prizes.

“We’re extremely excited to offer this online promotion to our loyal community of 2K Sports fans, as we think it’s a fantastic opportunity for us to interact more closely with them through a refreshingly fun and rewarding experience,” said Christoph Hartmann, president of 2K. “The NBA 2K franchise is king among basketball players and passionate fans who know and understand basketball. Revealing our cover athlete prior to Game One affords us a unique opportunity to capitalize on the anticipation surrounding the NBA Finals while simultaneously generating excitement for the release of NBA 2K9.”

The game, in development at Visual Concepts, will be released for the PS2, PS3 and Xbox 360 this Fall.

Hoping to knock out the competition, 2K Sports has announced the Spring 2008 release of Don King Presents: Prizefighter, an upcoming boxing simulation, for the DS, Wii and Xbox 360.

“The combination of real-life fight scenarios, story-driven gameplay and photo-realistic graphics will set this title apart from the competition,” said Christoph Hartmann, President of 2K. “Our goal has always been to deliver the most engaging and realistic titles, and Don King Presents: Prizefighter will exceed these expectations. Based on the game’s innovative features and high-profile fighters, this title will be a ‘must have’ for any sports gamer.”

It is being developed by Venom Games, who are hoping to deliver the realism of live-action match-ups and the tactics of boxing. Players will be charged with building the career of their boxers, balancing between training and promotion, and other stuff related to boxing.

2K Sports has announced that College Hoops 2K8 will contain 90 classic teams for gamers to play. The game will offer historically famed college teams as well as current favorite ones; out of the 90 classic teams, 69 will consist of teams from years past including the 1982 North Carolina Tarheels to the 1990 Loyola Marymount Lions. Additionally, gamers can choose to play from six all-time conference teams or 15 all-time school teams.

The game will be out later this month on PS2, PS3 and Xbox 360.

2K Sports has announced new features for College Hoops 2K8, its upcoming entry in the annual college basketball series. Here’s the deal:

In the All-American Training Challenge, players will be able to improve their game skills by competing in passing, shooting, and defensive tests against former college basketball standouts like Mike Conley Jr. of Ohio State, Julian Wright of Kansas, Glen “Big Baby” Davis of LSU, Alando Tucker of Wisconsin, Al Thornton of Florida State, J.J. Redick of Duke, and College Hoops 2K8 cover athlete, Greg Oden of Ohio State. Gamers can progress through the challenge drills against these great players while tracking their best times and highest scores in the game. With multiplayer support for up to four players, gamers can compete against their friends to see who has the best College Hoops skills.

College basketball fans will truly feel the benefit of playing in front of a frenzied crowd-be it at home or in a neutral tournament venue-with the 6th Man Advantage where the energy of a team’s fans can motivate a team to play harder and with more confidence. During a game, the 6th Man Meter measures the current energy and excitement level of the crowd. By scoring often, playing good defense, and raising the excitement level of the crowd, the 6th Man Meter will rise. Once the meter is full, the home team will gain the advantage of playing with less fatigue for a brief period while the opposing team will start to lose confidence in their playing ability. The 6th Man Advantage delivers a realistic element with how a great crowd can inspire their team to victory.

The game will be out this Fall on PS2, PS3 and Xbox 360.

2K Sports has announced that it will release Top Spin Tennis for the Wii in Spring 2008. The game is in development at PAM Development in conjunction with 2K Shanghai.

As expected, the Wii game will make use of the console’s motion-sensitive controllers, having players match the movements that they would make on a real court. The Nunchuk will control the player and aim, while the remote will be used to hit the ball like a tennis racquet.

There will be an array of modes in the game including singles, doubles, mixed and non-mixed matches, exhibitions, tournaments and more, with four levels of difficulty and ten international venues. Over a dozen licensed tennis stars as well as ten original characters will grace the game.

2K Games and 2K Sports have announced their lineups for the Leipzig Games Convention starting today. The publisher will be showing off Borderlands, Sid Meier’s Civilization Revolution, NBA 2K8, NHL 2K8 and Top Spin 3.

More details on their lineup can be found just after the jump.
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To showcase 2K Sports’ All Pro Football 2K8, the company has announced a coast-to-coast tour that will feature DJ Z-Trip, one of the most celebrated DJs and producers who has also worked on the game’s soundtrack. Joining him for roughly two dozen dates are Aceyalone and Gift of Gab, both of which appear on the game, the CD of remixes, mash-ups and original material that DJ Z-Trip produced for the game.

In addition to the above artistes, Rakim and M-1 are also expected to make guest appearances along the tour route. Tour stops will also include kiosks with the game and a multimedia component to DJ Z-Trip’s performance that integrates some of the game’s most intense plays.

Below are the tour dates:

• Jul 23 Harlow’s Nightclub Sacramento, California
  
• Jul 24 The Independent San Francisco, California
  
• Jul 25 Hawthorne Theatre Portland, Oregon
  
• Jul 26 Last Supper Club Seattle, Washington
  
• Jul 28 Suedes Park City, Utah
  
• Jul 29 Fox Theatre Boulder, Colorado
  
• Jul 31 Logan Square Auditorium Chicago, Illinois
  
• Aug 01 Blind Pig Ann Arbor, Michigan
  
• Aug 02 Middle East Cambridge, Massachusetts
  
• Aug 03 Theatre of Living Arts (Filmore) Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
  
• Aug 04 Sonar Baltimore, Maryland
  
• Aug 05 Highline Ballroom New York, New York
  
• Aug 06 Konkrete Jungle Richmond, Virginia
  
• Aug 08 Higher Ground Burlington, Vermont
  
• Aug 09 Agora Cleveland, Ohio
  
• Aug 12 Shambhala Festival Salmo, British Columbia
  
• Aug 15 House of Blues Los Angeles, California
  
• Aug 16 Rialto Theatre Tucson, Arizona
  
• Aug 18 Elysium Austin, Texas
  
• Aug 19 Granada Theater Dallas, Texas
  
• Aug 21 Sunshine Theatre Albuquerque, New Mexico
  
• Aug 22 Brickhouse Phoenix, Arizona
  
• Aug 23 The Grove Anaheim, California
  
• Aug 25 Southern Comfort Festival San Diego, California

More and more publishers are jumping on the “in-game ads” bandwagon: Take-Two is the latest one to be bitten by the bug. It has signed a deal with Double Fusion to offer in-game advertising in a selection of 2K Games and 2K Sports titles.

As per the terms of the agreement, Double Fusion will be the exclusive North American and European representative for advertising opportunities in 2K’s games throughout 2007 and 2008. In addition, it will serve as the exclusive representative and technology provider for dynamic in-game advertising across all PC and console platforms except for Xbox and Xbox 360.

Ever heard of a “left-of-the-dial” soundtrack? Well, now you can tell your grandchildren that you have: 2K Sports has compiled such a soundtrack for College Hoops 2K7, according to a press release by the company. The soundtrack features a diverse roster of underground hip-hop artists ranging from 3rd Degree to Traxamillion, as well as rock acts like Cities in Dust and Tokyo Police Club; P.O.D. also makes an appearance. As an added bonus, the game features original songs from 3rd Degree, Deux Process and Traxamillion.

2K Sports also mentioned 2K Beats, its internet radio station for fans of the publisher’s games. The site streams the music from all of the company’s best games, with access to artist bios, photos, discographies and more.

College Hoops 2K7 is now available for the PS2, Xbox and Xbox 360; a PS3 version will be available this winter.

The guys over at Take-Two Interactive have been working overtime on the PS3: the publisher has announced twenty games in development for the console, with more than seven titles from Rockstar Games; there are also eleven additional titles planned for release under the 2K Games and 2K Sports brand.

Notable titles in the announcement include The Darkness, Grand Theft Auto IV, L.A. Noire, NBA 2K7, NHL 2K7, The BIGS and more. Detailed descriptions inside.
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To promote the release of NBA 2K7, Chali 2na (Jurassic 5), Casual (Hieroglyphics) and A.G. (D.I.T.C.) will tour and perform with Dan the Automator across the States as part of the 2nd Annual 2K Sports Bounce Tour. This event will see the above artists performing in 13 West Coast cities, with additional shows pending.

Dan the Automator has produced the soundtrack to NBA 2K7, which “involved sculpting the beats to mirror the tempo of a basketball game and enlisting rappers from across the nation for a diverse sound.”

The 2nd Annual 2K Bounce Tour is a series of live events that bridge hip-hop, sports and videogame culture by featuring renowned musicians, sports, gaming kiosks and more. Below are the dates:

Nov 29 - San Luis Obispo, CA - SLO Brewing Company
Nov 30 - San Francisco, CA - Mezzanine
Dec 1 - Santa Cruz, CA - The Catalyst
Dec 2 - Chico, CA - Senator Theatre
Dec 4 - Portland, OR - Berbatti’s Pan
Dec 5 - Bellingham, WA - The Nightlight
Dec 6 - Seattle, WA - Neumo’s
Dec 8 - Park City, UT - Suede
Dec 9 - Aspen, CO - Belly Up
Dec 10 - Boulder, CO - Fox Theatre & Cafe
Dec 12 - Albuquerque, NM - Sunshine Theater
Dec 14 - San Diego, CA - Canes Bar & Grill
Dec 15 - Los Angeles, CA - El Rey Theatre

In addition to the above, 2K Sports has also announced the release of the Official 2K7 Mixtape, mixed by world famous DJ Clinton Sparks. The mixtape is a free download of non-stop 40 minutes of hip-hop, including tracks by Fabolous, Ghostface, Lupe Fiasco, A Tribe Called Quest, Mos Def, Dilated Peoples and more.

NBA 2K7 is now available for PS3, Xbox 360 and Xbox.

Up until now, team sports games on consoles have only been about “you”. But we all know that there is no “u” in team, and that’s why 2K Sports will implement a “Team Unity” system in College Hoops 2K7, emphasizing the importance of team chemistry in sports games.

“A positively-focused, cohesive team makes all the difference when it comes to competing in any sport,” said Greg Thomas, president of Visual Concepts, a 2K Sports studio. “Team chemistry is crucial in college ball as it can make or break a team and make the impossible seem possible for underdog teams. George Mason’s entrance into the Final Four last year is an excellent example of how great team unity will often lead to great success. Team Unity in College Hoops 2K7 allows gamers to focus on the important factors of fundamental team basketball to maximize winning potential.”

Team Unity in the upcoming game will help gamers gauge and predict their team’s performance. Four key factors will be taken into consideration when calculating Team Unity: individual player confidence, overall team awareness, rating lineup consistency and a strong team leader. If the level of Unity is low, it will result in bad rotational defense, sloppy screen setting, missed passes, and a myriad of other consequences. This feature will also play an important role in Legacy Mode, as it impacts a team’s performance over the course of one or several seasons.

College Hoops 2K7 Is now available for Xbox and Xbox 360; December will see the release of the PS2 version, and a PS3 version is expected later this Winter.

2K Sports has announced a number of unique new features in College Hoops 2K7, introducing the Chant Creator, the enhanced Coach mode, and the even more realistic college game atmosphere.

The unique Chant Creator, the first of its kind in any sports title, allows the gamer to control the excitement of the crowd by constructing custom chants to play during key moments of play. Gamers are given a multitude of options to customize in-game chants, including drum percussions, letters, words, mascots, states/regions, and more. In addition, over 200 fight songs have been added to further enhance the overall college atmosphere in College Hoops 2K7, as well as more than 50 new default crowd chants and new cheerleader routines, mascot dancing and new gyms. With Chant Creator, countless combinations can be created to give each team’s fans a distinct sound, immersing gamers even deeper into the emotional atmosphere of College Hoops 2K7.

An expanded Coach Mode provides College Hoops 2K7 players a unique first person perspective through the eyes of the coach. As the coach, gamers can move up and down the sidelines changing the tempo of the game, call plays and make substitutions. Adding to the authentic coach experience, College Hoops 2K7 is the only college basketball title on the market to include the likenesses of hundreds of actual college coaches-including Roy Williams, Billy Donovan, John Calipari, Jay Wright and more. College Hoops 2K7, featuring J.J. Redick, former star player for the Duke University Blue Devils on the cover, will be available in November for the Xbox 360™ and Xbox® video game and entertainment systems from Microsoft, and the PlayStation®2 computer entertainment system. College Hoops 2K7 for the PLAYSTATION®3 computer entertainment system will be available this winter.

Offering the chance to gamers to upload their (fantabulous?) replays is 2K Sports through their “2K Reelmaker” feature for NBA 2K7. Available only to Xbox 360 players, the feature will let players create their own unique video highlight reels from saved replays in the game and share them on Xbxo Live; 2K Reelmaker is now available on the Xbox Live Marketplace for 400 points.

The Reelmaker will let gamers adjust the speed of replays, add special effects, insert sound samples from the commentary team and much more.

2K Sports has announced that Dan the Automator presents 2K7, the soundtrack for NBA 2K7, is now available for purchase throughout North America. This collection of 12 tracks includes songs from Mos Def, Fabulous, E-40, along with Dan the Automator himself.

Select tracks from the album includes: Dan the Automator - Intro, A Tribe Called Quest - Lyrics to Go (Dan the Automator Remix), Fabolous - Ball Til You Fall, Mos Def & Anwar Superstar - Here Comes The Champ and many others.

NBA 2K7 is available on the PS2 and Xbox 360; a PS3 version will be available this Holiday season.