Christmas In July: Thank-You Electronic Arts!!!
Thursday, July 15, 2010 at 04:15AM 
July 15, 2010: Even on a day with no major pro sports in action, gamers had plenty to do as Electonic Arts and EA Sports held its "Electronic Arts Holiday Gift Guide" event on July 14 in New York at the Edison Ballroom. For some five hours, the videogame company let visitors play like it was Christmas morning, showcasing more than 15 as yet unreleased titles across multiple platforms, including Bulletstorm, Dead Space 2, EA Sports Active 2, FIFA Soccer 11, Madden NFL 11, Medal of Honor, Need for Speed Hot Pursuit, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1, Monopoly Streets and The Sims 3.
As part of the event, Tony Gonzalez, tight end with the NFL's Atlanta Falcons, took on all comers in Madden NFL 11, and other notables in the videogame world made the rounds as if at a Hollywood premiere.
In fact, Need for Speed Hot Pursuit is actually being feted as a star among stars: The New York event was the first stop in a cross-country tour that will also see advance-screening parties in Chicago, Miami, Austin, San Francisco, Los Angeles and Seattle. The game itself does not officially hit stores until Nov. 16.
According to Keith Munro, vp-marketing for EA, "Need for Speed Hot Pursuit puts players and their friends at the heart of the game. This game is about the heat of competition, cops versus racers, taking down your friends and showing them who owns the streets. These events celebrate that spirit of one-upmanship by getting friends together to play together, even before the game is released."
As part of its Xmas in July presence, EA Sports also unveiled four screen shots for its NBA Jam, which hits retail Oct. 5, starring the Miami Heat all-star trio of Lebron James, Dwyane Wade, and Chris Bosh.
And as if that were not enough, EA Sports teamed with Nike to unveil a limited-edition Nike Trainer 1.2 shoe for Tim Tebow, rookie quarterback for the Denver Broncos. Tebow, who is the cover athlete on NCAA Football 11, has endorsement deals with both companies. The game was released this week with marketing support that also includes a TV spot, Internet and POP. The spot, "Where I Come From," features such players as Tebow, Ndamukong Suh and DeSean Jackson — college football stars now in the NFL — filling out the line in their own words. "Where I come from . . . we grind all day, every day. No sleep," says Jackson.
The shoes are actually a mini-history of Tebow's playing career: The orange-and-blue color scheme reflect his playing career at both the University of Florida and the Broncos; "NCAA 11" is stitched on the front strap and the EA Sports logo is on the tongue; and the years 2007, 2008, and 2009 are on one heal to the seasons in which he won such honors as the Heisman Trophy year and the BCS national title.