July 29^th, 2005 (3:54pm) - For the first time, American Pump It Up players are getting to compete for cash prizes and exclusive merchandise with the debut of the United States Pump It Up Championship Series, sponsored by video game publisher Mastiff, Andamiro, and Coin it Up. The next leg of the U.S. series will be The Battle of New Orleans, held this weekend in Houma, LA. The U.S. Championship will be held in Charlotte, N.C. on September 24, 2005, and winners of the U.S. series will get a chance to compete at the World Festival in Seoul this November. Winners of the World Festival bring home upwards of US$10,000 and earn the title of World Pump It Up Champion.

Developed by Andamiro and a smash hit in Asia, Europe, Mexico and South America, Pump It Up is the hot dance video game that lets players actually dance to choreographed music rather than just stomping on the right spot. Video Game publisher Mastiff will release Pump It Up: Exceed for the PlayStation 2 and the Xbox to retail stores throughout North America on August 31, 2005.

The U.S. Championship Series consists of six or seven main events around the U.S. running from January through September and culminating in the final National Festival. The winners at the National Festival will go on to represent the United States at the World Festival held in November in Seoul, Korea. The host cities to be used in the U.S. Championship Series are selected by region in order to have the tour span across America, giving players from all areas an opportunity to show their skills and earn the title of Pump It Up Champion. In addition to the main events, smaller local tournaments will also be held throughout the Series. These sub-tournaments feature Pump It Up merchandise prizes and free entry for players.

Each main event consists of four or five separate tournaments called Divisions. The Divisions match the different difficulty levels in the Pump It Up game: Hard, Crazy, Freestyle, and Battle. A new Division for the home console release of Pump It Up will give players more opportunities to win. Prizes for each Division include cash, exclusive tournament-only Pump It Up merchandise, and other sponsored prizes. Sony Computer Entertainment America takes no responsibility for this offer.

"We are very excited about the Championship Series. Never before has an organized tournament series been provided for Pump it Up players. We’re looking forward to taking the best American Pump It Players to Korea in November and hopefully returning home with the title," says James "Smidget" DeVito, official Pump It Up ambassador and top U.S. Freestyler.

"Pump It Up has always had a legion of rabid fans in the arcades," says Bill Swartz, Head Woof of Mastiff, publisher of Pump It Up: Exceed for the PlayStation 2 and Xbox in North America. "With the release of the home version this summer, the overall number of people playing Pump It Up should swell, and with more players will come an even higher level of competition."