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Chime

Musical puzzler arrives on Xbox LIVE Arcade, with proceeds going to Save the Children and Starlight Children's Foundation.

San Francisco, Calif. – Feb. 3, 2010 - OneBigGame, the non-profit publisher of videogames, rings in the new year with its music puzzle game Chime, available now on Xbox LIVE® Arcade for the Xbox 360® video game and entertainment system from Microsoft. Chime is available for a price of 400 Microsoft Points ($5 USD) on Xbox LIVE Arcade for Xbox 360, and OneBigGame will donate net proceeds to charity partners Save the Children and Starlight Children’s Foundation.

Save the Children is the leading independent organization creating lasting change in the lives of children and, next to many other countries, currently very active in Haiti, helping children and families in extreme need. Starlight Children’s Foundation provides support to children with chronic and life-threatening illnesses and injuries by providing entertainment, education and family activities.

“OneBigGame couldn’t have wished for a better launch title than Chime,” said Martin de Ronde, director, OneBigGame. “Its production values, innovative mechanics and overall quality perfectly show what can happen if top names in the games industry are asked to create an entertainment game for charity.”

Developed by music game protégé Zoë Mode, Chime represents the first title in OneBigGame’s exciting and inspiring catalog of games.OneBigGame has more than 15 games currently in development from various established developers and designers, to raise funds for its children’s charities.

Creations from Masaya Matsuura and Charles Cecil, amongst other talented artists, will follow Zoë Mode’s charming Chime.

A creative twist on both music and block puzzle games, Chime tasks players with covering the playing field with irregular shapes, each connected to a sound effect from the background music track, to form rectangular blocks, called quads.

Chime’s innovative game mechanics enables players to create a unique remix of each song every time they play a level as the building of larger quads unlock more elements of the underlying song. Working their way to 100 percent coverage of the grid, players will unlock the song in full. Acclaimed artists Philip Glass, Moby, Markus Schulz, Paul Hartnoll of Orbital and Fred Deakin of Lemon Jelly have donated their music tracks pro bono.

“Zoë Mode specializes in developing music and social games” said Ed Daly, General manager of Zoë Mode, “So it was great to be able to join our expertise with the serious work of OneBigGame to create the fantastic soundscapes and addictive gameplay of Chime. We believe gamers will get hooked, and in the process, will help a great cause.”

Chime is available now on Xbox LIVE Arcade for Xbox 360. For more information about Chime, please visit www.chimegame.com.

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About OneBigGame

OneBigGame aims to raise funds to help solve problems afflicting children around the world. The nature of these problems can be diverse, but the kind of projects OneBigGame supports will always revolve around a structural improvement in children’s lives, expanding their opportunities in life.

OneBigGame raises funds by publishing games kindly donated pro bono by established names in game development, in conjunction with support from the development community as a whole. The games will be published on the dedicated games portal OneBigGame.org, as well as through a variety of PC and console download channels.

OneBigGame always aims to donate a minimum of 80 percent of all donations to its charity partners Save the Children and Starlight Children’s foundation. To learn more about OneBigGame, please visit www.onebiggame.org.

About Zoë Mode

Zoë Mode makes games that are accessible; simple, social games that are effortlessly fun but don’t take themselves too seriously. Based in London and San Francisco, Zoë Mode’s diverse work force is unified by its attitude to gaming. Zoë Mode believes that games are powerful ways of bringing people together; that there is more to life than gaming, but that gaming can make life better; and strongly believes that there is a game for everyone. Zoë Mode is part of Kuju Entertainment Limited.

All of Zoë Mode’s services are provided at no cost to OneBigGame, and all Zoë Mode’s royalties (a minimum of 60 percent of the purchase price) are donated to OneBigGame. To learn more about Zoë Mode, please visit www.zoemode.com or contact anna.morris@zoemode.com / T: +44(0) 1273 573600.

About charity partner Save the Children

Save the Children is the world's largest independent organization for children, making a difference to children's lives in more than120 countries. From emergency relief to long-term development, Save the Children helps children to achieve a happy, healthy and secure childhood. Save the Children listens to children, involves children and ensures their views are taken into account. Save the Children secures and protects children's rights - to food, shelter, healthcare, education and freedom from violence, abuse and exploitation. Save the Children’s current relief efforts include sending emergency response teams to Haiti and organizing the distribution of tents, medicine, toiletries and earthquake relief supplies to children and families in extreme need. To learn more about Save the Children, please visit www.savethechildren.org.uk.

About charity partner Starlight Children’s Foundation

For 25 years, Starlight Children’s Foundation has been dedicated to helping seriously ill children and their families cope with their pain, fear and isolation through entertainment, education and family activities. Starlight’s programs have been proven to distract children from their pain, help them better understand and manage their illnesses, and connect families facing similar challenges so that no one feels alone. Through a network of chapters and offices, Starlight provides ongoing support to children, parents and siblings in all U.S. states and Canadian provinces with an array of outpatient, hospital-based and Web offerings. Programs are also delivered internationally through affiliates in Australia, Japan and the United Kingdom. To learn more about Starlight Children’s Foundation, please visit www.starlight.org.

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