Below is a press release from Ubisoft announcing the release of the Chessmaster series to XBOX Live Arcade. It’ll feature hundreds of AI opponents, ability for head to head matches, new 3D chess sets and a new Message Chess option (sort of like play by mail for extended play).

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SAN FRANCISCO – November 28, 2007 – Today Ubisoft, one of the world’s largest video game publishers, announced that it is releasing Chessmaster® LIVE on the Xbox LIVE® Arcade for the Xbox 360® video game and entertainment system from Microsoft.

“Bringing the Chessmaster series to Xbox LIVE Arcade makes the game accessible to a whole new audience,” said Peter Helm, business development associate at Ubisoft. “Chessmaster LIVE is not only a comprehensive chess program, but it is also one that has expanded beyond the traditional game to include exciting features for fans, both old and new.”

Chessmaster LIVE will feature:
Hundreds of AI opponents to play in ELO-ranked matches Voice-chat and LIVE Vision capabilities for head-to-head matches New 3D chess sets inspired by luxury board designer, House of Staunton Five original chess variants, including the all-new Message Chess option, which will allow players to engage in a match over the course of days, weeks or even months

Chessmaster LIVE will be available for download in January 2008.

Ubisoft will also be publishing Chessmaster for the PSP® (PlayStation®Portable) system, scheduled for a worldwide release in Spring 2008.

About Ubisoft

Ubisoft is a leading producer, publisher and distributor of interactive entertainment products worldwide and has grown considerably through a strong and diversified lineup of products and partnerships. Ubisoft has offices in 21 countries and sales in more than 50 countries around the globe. It is committed to delivering high-quality, cutting-edge video game titles to consumers. Ubisoft generated sales of 680 million Euros for the 2006-07 fiscal year. To learn more, please visit www.ubisoftgroup.com.

© 2007 Ubisoft Entertainment. All Rights Reserved. Chessmaster, Ubisoft, Ubi.com, and the Ubisoft logo are trademarks of Ubisoft Entertainment in the U.S. and/or other countries. Microsoft, Xbox, Xbox 360, Xbox LIVE, and the Xbox logos are trademarks of the Microsoft group of companies.

China published the first picture of the moon captured by Chang’e-1 on Monday morning, marking the success of the country’s first lunar probe project.

In this photo released by China’s Xinhua News Agency, Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao unveils the moon image captured by China’s lunar orbiter Chang’e-1 during an unveiling ceremony at the Beijing Aerospace Control Center in Beijing Monday, Nov. 26, 2007.

This has got to be some kind of joke, right? It looks like something from the Apollo missions. How does this even come close to comparing to what the Japanese Lunar probe recently did?

‘Is Computer Science Dying?‘

Now that Apple is making a profit, pundits need something else as the target of predictions of impending doom. Some seem to have fastened onto computer science, prompting David Chisnall to wonder if the subject really is dying.

On gaygamer.net,  Major Nelson from XBOX responds to a recording recently posted on their site. It’s of taunts and slurs made by a slew of homophobes towards one gamer called ‘xxx Gay Boy xxx’. The NSFW recording on youtube is here.

Major Nelson replied to the article here:

I just watched (listened) to the video you posted on your site. Needless to say, it was disappointing to see how some Xbox LIVE members behave. As you know, that is not the type of behavior we support. With over 8-million members, it’s unfortunate that some members decide to act like this. I want to point out a few things that ALL Xbox Live members can do to ensure a enjoyable experience:

1) Play online only with friends.

2) Turn off voice from non-friends. This is a system level setting that work across all games, and as you can imagine, will only allow you to hear what your friends will say. You can find details on how to set it up here http://www.xbox.com/en-US/support/familysettings/live/xbox360/familysettings-communications.htm

I also want to let your readers know that if they EVER encounter behavior like that in any game, they should use the in dash feedback system to file a complaint:

3) File a complaint. Using the dashboard complaint system, file a communications complaint. We DO act on complaints, so I highly encourage people file complaints where appropriate. Details on how to file a complaint here: http://support.microsoft.com/kb/908640?sd=xbox

Also, I’d be happy to play with you and some of your readers sometime as well.

Technology Review discusses an ambitious project to create an accurate computer model of the brain has reached an impressive milestone. Scientists in Switzerland working with IBM researchers have shown that their computer simulation of the neocortical column, arguably the most complex part of a mammal’s brain, appears to behave like its biological counterpart.

By demonstrating that their simulation is realistic, the researchers say, these results suggest that an entire mammal brain could be completely modeled within three years, and a human brain within the next decade.