The game is set in year 2010 where player.s conscience is entrapped by an up-to-date virus-infected virtual reality-playing machine called FireStarter. The virus-caused failure resulted in computer changing the rules of the game . to break out of the trap, the player is to complete the game within 48 hours. Immerse in an unbelievable world, created by super-modern playing machine, where you are to make it a winner of the adrenaline-brimming action. The gameplay is action-focused . a player is to carry out tasks on levels overcrowded with dangerous monsters, by using personal skills, over 20 types of weapons and unique artefacts. The victory conditions vary from a need to survive within a given time to eliminating a certain monster/device.

Blood Omen II: Legacy of Kain has gone gold, and will be in stores soon. Here's the soup (Thanks VE) from Eidos: " Blood Omen 2, the latest installment in the Legacy of Kain Series is a 3rd person 3D action/combat game in which the player assumes the role of the vampire Kain. A compelling story drives the player through huge lushly detailed 3D environments and challenges their game play skills in combat, puzzle solving, stealth and exploration." So we can expect it in stores soon ;)))

On March 29th, Rangers Football Coach and Celtic Football Coach will be released on CD-ROM for the PC. So, while few fans will ever sit behind the managers’ desks at Ibrox or Celtic Park, any fan with a home PC will be able to take charge of either team through these unique simulations.

Ubi Soft, one of the world's largest video game publishers, announces Monster Jam: Maximum Destruction has shipped for Nintendo GameBoy Advance. The game will be available in retail stores nationwide for $39.99 MSRP.

Electronic Arts and Crave Entertainment Ship Freedom Force for the PC is the announcement that this spandex-infested 3D tactical combat RPG by Irrational Games is on its way to stores. Also, Infogrames, Inc. Re-Writes Evolution With Carnivores : Cityscape announces that this Serious Engine-powered first-person shooter by Sunstorm Interactive is about to appear on store shelves as well. Finally, for now, Strategy First sends along word that Dragon Throne: Battle of Red Cliffs, the isometric RTS by Object Software set in Chinese history, has been released as well. (Thanks Blues & VE). Yesterday we announced Global Operations shipped as well ... start counting your pennies ...

Strategy First is pleased to announce that they will now accept applications to beta test their upcoming 3D Real time Strategy Game, O.R.B. O.R.B., an acronym for Off-World Resource Base, is a visually stunning 3D real time strategy game that pits the forces of two races against each other in a desperate struggle across multiple systems to control the resources they need to expand their empires.

Infogrames, Inc. today shipped its first game for the hot Nintendo Game Boy Advance handheld video game system: Atari Anniversary Advance. The Game Pak contains six of the most recognized Atari arcade games of all time. Asteroids, Battlezone, Centipede, Missile Command, Super Breakout and Tempest are all emulated down to the last detail. The games are so authentically recreated that they retain the small program glitches and bugs that arcade aces learned to exploit in the golden age of arcades.

BAM! Entertainment today announced that its explosive racing game Driven for Nintendo GameCube is shipping to stores this week, making it the first true racing game available on the platform. Developed by BAM! Studios Europe, BAM!'s first GameCube project results from the company's multi-year, multi-title relationship with Franchise Pictures and is based on that studio's movie of the same name - starring award-winning actor Sylvester Stallone. In addition, Driven for GameCube is slated to ship in time for the European launch of Nintendo's next generation console in May of this year.

Infogrames has opened a product page for Carnivores: Cityscape, showcasing the first-person dinosaur shooter by Sunstorm Interactive that should be shipping in a day or two. Along with the game information and the system requirements, the page also offers a half a minute gameplay movie in AVI format at 6.6 MB in size. (thanks Blues for the heads up)

IBVA Technologies has brought their brain tracking technology to the Microsoft Xbox. "We've been waiting for this for over a decade," said Drew DeVito, President of IBVA Technologies, Inc. "There is finally a consumer product that has the power to do everything we've always wanted to do with braintracking in the home." I'm sure with some people results may vary *g*

Earlier today we brought you the first Gamecube screens and now EA dropped us a few PC (work in progress) screens .. njoy

After the immense success of EA SPORTS Cricket 2002 for PlayStation 2, prepare to play the greatest cricketing match ups on your PC. EA SPORTS Cricket 2002 - PC will have all the great features and playability of the PlayStation 2 game and will definitely be the definitive Cricket PC game of all time! Another Cricket game .. just what we've all been waiting for ... errr .. yea .. SURE ;)

Electronic Arts announced that Ultima Online Lord Blackthorn’s Revenge, the latest version in the award-winning Ultima Online series, will be in European stores from April 5th. The game, created by Origin Systems, an Electronic Arts development studio, introduces 30 new monsters designed by Grammy and Emmy–winning Producer and Director Todd McFarlane, creator of Spawn, McFarlane Toys and Spawn.com. Alongside the new game, Origin Systems has also announced the release of Ultima Online GameTime, which allows players to buy periods of prepaid time in Ultima Online without the need for credit cards.

Put your driving skills to the test in the first game to feature the new 2002 Formula One season-vie for the coveted Formula One driver’s title as the real season unfolds. The world’s best drivers pilot the world’s sexiest racing machines, with the high-tech, high-intensity panache that could only come from EA SPORTS™. Muscle your way to the front and enjoy every heart-stopping moment as you battle for every inch of track against the superstars of the sport. Choose to race in a champion’s car or challenge yourself by taking the wheel for an up-and-coming team-just make sure you have what it takes, because your opponents drive just as hard as you do. Take the wheel in F1 2002 and take aim at the 2002 Formula One World Championship.

We just received a bundle of screenshots showing the special unlockable features. This looks like some of the THQ developers smoked some heavy pot to come up with the psychedelic colors and effects this resulted in ... woah! Beware! Scheduled for the PC and Xbox somewhere in June 2002.

Anyone who thinks that computer and video games are a "low brow" form of entertainment should think again, says ELSPA. The trade body for the UK interactive leisure software sector believes that a forthcoming major exhibition, Game On, which examines the history and cultural impact of computer and video games, will open the eyes of many people to the influence of games on popular culture and fine art. The exhibition will be held at the Barbican Gallery in London (16 May - 15 September) and the Museum of Scotland, Edinburgh (October 2002 - February 2003).

Strategy First and NBG announced today that they have signed a North American publishing agreement for Pro Train I and II, two Microsoft Train Simulator add-ons.

Project Three this morning announced it has halted the countdown for the Public Multiplayer Beta of New World Order on T - 03.25 Hrs before intended release. Arrghh NOOOOOOOO!!! I hate bad news!

You are an insect!!! A genetically modified, highly trained killer bug, with a bad attitude, an arsenal of deadly weapons and an itchy trigger finger! ‘Stung!’ from Prey Digital Studios, is a new action kill ‘em up which offers groundbreaking new gameplay elements, realistic environments and a cast of crazy, creepy crawly characters. Stung is being developed for the GameCube, PC, PS2 and Xbox. Everybody happy, now check the new screens!

Welcome, dear reader, to this first installment of the developer's diary for UFO: Aftermath. I hope that you will find it both enlightening and light-hearted; I abhor the dreary dullness of the hype-filled marketing-made buy-this-game "diaries" just as the self-indulged ego-trips of the developers who believe anybody is at all interested in their minutest whims. As a result I am not going to talk much about my work as such but rather about the game we are working on; and I will try not to hide from you any doubts, sacrifices, dubious decisions and the like as they happen along the way. This is not to say that I will not be holding anything back, but I will try to be as honest and open as possible, under the circumstances. Thanks to Altar's Jiri for passing this on!

Fans of the Close Combat series had a lot to talk about today, after Strategy First and Freedom Games announced that they have entered into a North American publishing agreement for the G.I. Combat series, the next generation of real-time historical strategy gaming. The first release will be G.I. Combat: Episode I, Normandy.

After an exciting couple years, the game is shipping! We all had a lot of fun during the development and can't wait to play against you all. Check your local stores in the next couple days to pick yours up! A special thanks to all the beta testers and server hosts for their hard work in helping make this game great! Global Operations is a stand alone, team based, first person shooter based on a significantly modified version of the LithTech 2.5 engine,. Although it is being developed as a multiplayer experience for up to 24 players, there will also be a single player game with AI controlled teammates and opponents. We'll be bringing you some screens and info as soon as we got it in the mail.

Big Huge Games just put up the FAQ on their upcoming RTS "Rise Of The Nations. Items such as release date, demo, public beta and many other goodies are discussed .. Here's a snippet ...

Q: How is Rise of Nations different from Age of Empires?
A: While both are "historical RTS games", the two products are very different. In particular, Rise of Nations covers the sweep of human history, not just one specific time period. Players can guide their civilization from the stone age to the modern era, all in the span of an hour.

Following up a recent report that Hitman 2: Silent Assassin was delayed, Eidos sends word that "in our effort to make Hitman 2 the best game it could be" the contract killing sequel is now scheduled for release September this year, in order "to give additional time to the development team." In other release-related news, Microsoft has posted a Dungeon Siege International Release Dates schedule giving an idea when the game is expected in your area. Loaded Inc. posted a preview of Dungeon Siege based on the press beta build

Star Wars Jedi Outcast: Jedi Knight II is a dynamic single and multiplayer action experience that continues the saga of the once powerful Jedi Knight, Kyle Katarn, as he struggles with the power – and dangers – of the Force. Through a multitude of complex and richly detailed Star Wars environments players face a variety of powerful enemies and once again fight for the Rebel cause. Armed with the power of the Force, and an arsenal of weapons, including a Jedi Knight's signature lightsaber, players hold the fate of the Star Wars galaxy and the destiny of Kyle Katarn in their hands. I'm battling my way through the game and i must admit ... i am impressed! The graphics are great .. the AI is good, the animations are crisp and above all .. the level design is fabulous ... tricky, hard, and big levels ... a few more days patience people ... it is da coming! In the meantime take a glimpse of what to expect and check the screens ... a whopping 60 and more coming as i slash my way through the game!

Since we announced it earlier today that Take2/Rockstar are coming up soon (May 2002) with the PC version of GTA3, people starting hunting down some screens ... Gamespy got 2 nice one's and ign managed to dig up 3 others... Check em out!

While looking for a little Asheron's Call 2 news, I noticed that the AC Vault posted a Q&A of sorts with Turbine, which is based from developer responses that took place over the past week. HomeLAN kicks off the week right with an Q&A with Ingo Horn of Westka Interactive talking about their sci-fi genre blender, The Y-Project (powered by the Unreal Warfare engine). Gamehelper.com offers a status report on Gearbox Studios upcoming Counter-Strike game, Condition Zero. Black Moon Chronicles Q&A #8 on RPG Vault chats with Benoît Papy, lead game master at Vircom on their upcoming MMORPG based on the French comic, discussing his goals for the servers under his control. There's a Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic Chat Transcript on Games Domain recapping Friday's chat session with BioWare's team creating this upcoming Star Wars MMORPG. The log is in an easy to follow color-coded Q&A format. There's a Tomb Raider: Angel of Darkness Q&A on The Electric Playground talking with Core's Adrian Smith about the Lara Croft franchise, the movie spin-off, the future of the series, and more. There's a Cameron Spence Q&A on BarrysWorld talking with this former SAS operative about the expertise he's lending to the team creating Conflict: Desert Storm.