200 of the best gamers in America will battle it out on nine different gaming titles for one of the coveted thirteen spots on TEAM USA and the chance to take home a share of more than $100,000 in cash and prizes. Members of TEAM USA will then travel to Chengedu, China to take on the world's best gamers from 70 other countries at the WCG 2009 Grand Final.

The World Cyber Games is a year-long international gaming tournament widely renowned as the 'Olympics' of the Video Games, and has been certified as the "World's largest video game festival" by the Guinness Book of Records with 1.5 million gamers from 74 countries. The WCG's latest innovation, WCG Ultimate Gamer, is an 8-episode reality TV show that just finished airing on the SCI FI channel. Winner Mark Smith has earned the grand prize of $100,000, the ultimate Samsung Electronics package, and a contract to represent the WCG at events worldwide.

"We are extremely proud to partner with Reed Exhibitions - the very best in event entertainment," said Aaron Smolick, Director of Marketing with the WCG. "The WCG is elevating eSports to the next level in North America and proving once again that we are the most significant competitive circuit in the World."

Gaming fans will be able to see several elite competitors live at this year's WCG USA National Final as several returning members of last year's WCG TEAM USA as well as the cast of the SCI FI Channel's WCG Ultimate Gamer will be gaming all weekend on the industry-leading Samsung high definition TVs, monitors and mobile phones. PC, Console and Mobile games featured in the WCG USA 2009 tournament include:

• Half-Life: Counter-Strike 1.6 (5 v. 5 Team FPS )
• Starcraft: Brood War: (1 v. 1 RTS)
• WarCraft III: The Frozen Throne (1 v. 1 RTS)
• FIFA Soccer 09 (1 v. 1 Sports)
• Carom3D (1 v. 1 Casual)
• Red Stone (4 v. 4 Team MMORPG)
• Gears of War 2 (4 v. 4 Team FPS) US title only
• Guitar Hero World Tour (1 v. 1 Music)
• Virtua Fighter 5 (1 v. 1 Fighting)
• Asphalt 3: Street Rules (1 v. 1 Racing)
• WiseStar (1 v. 1 Strategy)

"We are very excited to partner with the World Cyber Games," said Lance Fensterman, Show Manager of the New York Anime Festival. "Our attendees hunger for video games, and the WCG will provide fans with the best of the best. The WCG National Final is a unique event that we are honored to host."

"Samsung has been the worldwide partner of the World Cyber Games since 2000 and is pleased to continue our support of the global competition that brings the passion of gaming to life," said David Steel, senior vice president of strategic marketing for Samsung Electronics America. "The participants and fans of the World Cyber Games are some of the most technologically-savvy individuals around and we want them to experience the best technology Samsung has to offer while competitively gaming."

The New York Anime Festival dates and hours are:

• Friday, September 25 | 1:00 PM - 7:00 PM
• Saturday, September 26 | 10:00 AM - 7:00 PM
• Sunday, September 27 | 10:00 AM - 5:00PM

Registration for the 2009 WCG USA Championship Tournament is still open. US citizens are invited to visit www.wcg.com/usa to register for this year's tournament and to obtain more information about the WCG USA Championship tournament, the WCG Ultimate Gamer and TEAM USA. The WCG global market registrations are locally driven; international players should consult their home country's respective WCG website, which can be reached via links on www.wcg.com.

For more info about attending the New York Anime Festival, including ticket information, please go to the official website.