Wednesday, August 26, 2009

What Would You Do With An Extra Life? X-Life Games promo video



The X-Life Games team went out to Washington D.C. to ask “What would you do with an X-tra Life?” People had some pretty creative and interesting answers!

Become part of the X-Life Games Community and leave a comment or your thoughts on our Facebook fan page. Become a fan! http://www.facebook.com/xlifegames.community

You can also follow us on Twitter: http://twitter.com/xlifegames

Thanks!

Monday, August 3, 2009

X-Life Games sweepstakes contest

Enter the X-Life Games sweepstakes contest!

To enter, just visit our fan page on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/xlifegames.community

The prize is a free iPod Shuffle. Enter the contest and become a Fan of X-Life Games Fan page for a chance to win.

And please invite all of your friends too :)

Thanks,
Daniel

Thursday, June 25, 2009

X-Life Games surpasses 1,000 registered gamers!

BridgingCultures

MetroStar Systems is pleased to announce that our X-Life Games project has surpassed 1,000 registered gamers from over 85 different countries around the world!

X-Life Games launched in March 2009 as a pilot project for the U.S. Department of State. It is a free mobile phone game designed and developed by MetroStar Systems' New Media Technology team and X-Life Games LLC. The game features role-playing, trivia challenges, and adventures around the world. Our mission is to encourage understanding between different cultures and to provide an English language learning tool. I know that sounds pretty deep for a mobile phone game, but we think it is a positive and fun way to engage with the youth around the world; plus it is FREE for anyone who wants to play.

Micah L. Sifry and Andrew Rasiej (both from the Personal Democracy Forum) wrote an article for Politico.com entitled "P2P2G: The rise of e-diplomacy" that features a blurb about X-Life Games as one example of the State Department's diplomacy initiatives associated with Secretary of State Clinton's "21st Century Statecraft" theme:
Total views of State Department content on YouTube are up more than 400 percent since Obama’s Inauguration. ExchangesConnect, a cultural exchange social networking site (built on the free Ning.com platform) that focuses on foreign exchange students, recently registered its 10,000th member. And State has even launched an English-language learning game called X-Life, for cell phone users, designed to give users a sense of American life and culture.

In other news, the Wall Street Journal's Technology section recently published a special "All Things Digital" section. William M. Bulkeley offered a quiz entitled "How Well Do You Know...The Wireless World" and X-Life Games was highlighted in Question #10:
10) The U.S. State Department spent $415,000 to develop a mobile game called X-Life to improve perceptions of the U.S. in what country or region?

A. Venezuela B. The Middle East C. Russia D. France

ANSWER: B. MetroStar Systems Inc., a Reston, Va., company, created X-Life as a State Department pilot project to see whether e-diplomacy might spread cross-cultural understanding. The game has two role-playing choices: In one, the user’s avatar is a student studying abroad in the U.S.; in the other, the avatar is a musician in a rock band. (Grammy-winning band Ozomatli contributed a song for the game.)

Do you know the wireless world well? You can read the complete quiz here: Wall Street Journal Quiz

For complete info, news, and free game downloads, please visit http://www.xlifegames.com

Tuesday, April 14, 2009

ABC News features X-Life Games and MetroStar Systems' CEO

ABC NEWS interviewed MetroStar Systems' CEO, Ali Manouchehri, about X-Life Games last week. It is great that ABC News is interested in Diplomacy 2.0 and giving X-Life Games some quality airtime! You can view the video here:


http://abcnews.go.com/Video/playerIndex?id=7293394



Get info and download the game for free at http://www.xlifegames.com


#xlifegames

:)

Monday, March 9, 2009

X-Life Games featured on CNN

X-Life Games has been featured on CNN.com! Although it's not the most glowing article about the game, we are happy to have the additional exposure :)

http://www.cnn.com/2009/TECH/03/06/xlife.game/index.html

Tuesday, March 3, 2009

Launch of X-Life Games Heralds New Era for U.S. Diplomacy

Mobile Gaming Technology Pioneers e-Diplomacy Outreach to the Middle East and Persian Gulf

RESTON, Va.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--MetroStar Systems, Inc., a leader in New Media technology solutions for the federal government, announced today the much anticipated release of X-Life Games and its availability for free download on www.xlifegames.com. Developed by MetroStar Systems, X-Life Games is an English language mobile game that encourages cultural exchanges between Arabic, Persian, and English speaking cultures, demystifies American culture, and breaks down barriers that impede mutual understanding. Leveraging the latest in mobile technology, X-Life users in the Middle East and Gulf region will be introduced to American culture in a non-threatening and constructive manner.

“X-Life, the game, is a series of interrelated adventure modules which explore one idea - what unites us, rather than what divides us,” said Ali Reza Manouchehri, Chief Executive Officer of MetroStar Systems, Inc. “Middle East and the Persian Gulf youth will have the opportunity to experience the dynamism and vitality of American life. X-Life projects the fundamental values that Americans cherish: tolerance, freedom, and respect for cultural and religious differences.”

Prompting users to learn and use skills acquired through everyday experiences, each phase of the game allows the user to apply those skills to improve themselves and the world, all in a mobile application. This concept of cultural bridging embodied in a video game reaches across all generations, especially the current one being raised in an ever sophisticated and technological world.

“X-Life Games is the embodiment of ‘e-Diplomacy’, and reflects the new ‘soft diplomacy’ approach favored by the Obama Administration,” said Manouchehri. “The path-breaking mobile application pioneers e-Diplomacy by utilizing an emerging new media platform to engage the minds and hearts of overseas audiences.”

X-Life Games LLC was created in June of 2008 by MetroStar Systems, Inc. by key gaming industry veterans Neal Hallford, James Dzierwa, J.R. Register, and Ghafur Remtulla. The first titles from X-Life Games were funded by the U.S. Department of State as an initiative for e-Diplomacy.

X-Life Games was created for the public to use free of charge in an effort to bridge cultures. X-Life Games is not a single mobile game but a series of smaller, interrelated adventure modules that explore one theme. The players of this unique game will be able to select an avatar, earn and spend the game’s virtual currency, and progress through their X-Life while learning English through mobile handsets. Reflections can be made of the user’s life path, including how they would have handled careers, family, and other phases of life. In each game, the player gets to “try on” a new X-Life and rise to the top of that game’s featured profession. X-Life Games is available now via download at www.xlifegames.com.

About MetroStar Systems, Inc.

Headquartered in Reston, Virginia, MetroStar Systems, Inc.™ is a Small Business Administration-certified 8(a) firm that provides its clients with agile, collaborative solutions designed to integrate people, processes, technology, and learning across an organization and its geographic boundaries. MetroStar System’s core competencies are distributed through seven major service groups: 1) Portal Strategy and Integration, 2) Enterprise Infrastructure Support, 3) Business Intelligence, 4) New Media Technology, 5) Health, Finance and Insurance, 6) Training & Education, and 7) Custom Development. Information about MetroStar Systems and its products can be found on the company's website, www.MetroStarSystems.com