Skip to main content

Long read: The beauty and drama of video games and their clouds

"It's a little bit hard to work out without knowing the altitude of that dragon..."

If you click on a link and make a purchase we may receive a small commission. Read our editorial policy.

Xbox World Cup winners get VIP treatment

Hotels, dinners, massages, limos - and all you have to do is win a few games of FIFA 2005 on Xbox Live.

Electronic Arts has revealed more details about its forthcoming Xbox-only FIFA Interactive World Cup this week, announcing that a Qualifying Tournament will take place on Live between October 15th and November 5th, and that the top players will be automatically entered into their nearest regional tournament and given VIP treatment all the way there and back.

When the qualifying round closes on November 5th, EA plans to pluck the top 60 players from its leader boards, and each of them will be entered into their nearest regional tournament - whether that's London (Nov 20th), Paris (Dec 4th) or Berlin (Dec 11th), where they'll have the chance to compete for a place in the final, which will be held in Zurich later this year at the FIFA Player of the Year Gala.

Winners will also receive two nights' accommodation near the venue, dinner the night before, a pre-match massage, a limousine to transport them from the hotel to the tournament, and a commemorative FIFA Interactive World Cup VIP T-shirt. All of which sounds like a decent enough incentive to get stuck in to FIFA Football 2005 when it's released on October 15th.

Assuming you agree, you might want to sign-up for the qualifying rounds here, which you can do from today.