Microsoft backs Cyber Games

Microsoft Corp. is announcing today that it will sponsor the World Cyber Games through 2008. Under the agreement, Microsoft Windows and Xbox 360 will be the exclusive platforms for the world’s largest videogame tournament, which draws more than a million international competitors each year vying for $2.5 million in prizes.

This year’s tournament features eight games – two that will be played on the Xbox 360 console (Dead or Alive 4 and Project Gotham Racing 3) and six for the PC using Microsoft Windows (including Half-Life: Counter-Strike and Need for Speed: Most Wanted).

Preliminaries for the 2006 World Cyber Games, which will be based in South Korea, begin this month with Xbox Live online gaming competitions and real-world elimination rounds. In 2007, the grand finals will be held in Microsoft’s neighboring city, Seattle.

– Susan Carpenter