“Viva Piñata” Web Site Re-Launches Complete With Mini-Games, a Fan Site Kit and More

Built for fun, Microsoft Game Studios today announced the re-launch of the official “Viva Piñata” site at http://www.vivapinata.com/. Visitors to the site will enjoy the sights and sounds of Piñata Island, complete with information about the upcoming exclusive Xbox 360 game and the “Viva Piñata” animated television series, produced by 4Kids Entertainment and Bardel Entertainment. The site contains Piñata profiles, mini-games in the Piñata Arcade, ring tones, television episode titles and summaries, and much more.

Would-be virtual Piñata Island builders will also be able to find all the tools necessary to build their own colorful “Viva Piñata” site by downloading the “Viva Piñata” Fan Site Kit. The kit contains screenshots, renders, forum avatars, music clips, desktop wallpapers, and much more.

Set to release this holiday season worldwide, “Viva Piñata” is a customizable, social and spontaneous Xbox 360 game that invites players of all ages and skills to explore an immersive world where they are challenged to create and maintain a living garden ecosystem that grows in real time. Beginning with a few basic tools, players build and take control of their environment to attract and host more than 60 species of wild piñata, utilizing hundreds of customizable elements to create their very own distinctively unique thriving paradise.

“Viva Piñata” gameplay will continue to evolve with new content available via the Xbox Live® service and the ability to trade and interact with millions of gamers online.

The “Viva Piñata” animated television series premiered in the U.S. on Saturday, September 9 at 9:30am (ET) on 4Kids TV — 4Kids Entertainment’s four hours of children’s programming broadcast Saturday mornings on FOX. In this comedy series, produced by 4Kids Entertainment and Bardel Entertainment, a cast of piñata “friends” embark on wild adventures on Piñata Island. The appealing characters and their charming personalities are sure to entertain and stimulate the series’ audience as they accompany the piñata characters on their zany adventures.

About Microsoft Game Studios
Microsoft Game Studios is a leading worldwide publisher and developer of games for the Xbox® and Xbox 360™ video game systems, the Windows® operating system and online platforms. Comprising a network of top developers, Microsoft Game Studios is committed to creating innovative and diverse games for Windows (http://www.microsoft.com/games), including such franchises as “Age of Empires®,” “Flight Simulator” and “Zoo Tycoon®;” Xbox and Xbox 360 (http://www.xbox.com), including such games as the upcoming “Gears of War” and franchises such as “Halo®,” “Fable®,” “Project Gotham Racing®” and “Forza Motorsport™”; and MSN® Games (http://www.games.msn.com), the official games channel for the MSN network and home to such hits as “Bejeweled” and “Hexic®.”