The Netherworld - a realm darker than the deepest abyss, located far beneath where mortals tread. It is a cursed land where evil reigns and foul beings dwell. Nobody knows its whereabouts, but everybody fears its existence... The story takes place two years after the death of King Krichevskoy, the ruler of the Netherworld. His son Laharl awakens from a long sleep, unaware of his father's death. Meanwhile, scheming demons vie for supremacy over the Netherworld. With the help of his subordinate Etna and her underlings, the egocentric, self-absorbed Prince Laharl must fight to regain the throne and claim his birthright.

Atlus U.S.A. released some screens and a trialer for "Lufia: The Ruins of Lore", the next title in the wildly popular Lufia role-playing series. Developed for the Game Boy Advance, the title will be released in North America in the Spring of 2003. This exciting new chapter follows the adventures of Eldin and his childhood friends, Torma and Rami, as they strive to solve the mystery of the ancient ruins and halt the resurrection of an evil beast whose power could eradicate humanity. Read more for the goodies ...

Star Wars Galaxies: An Empire Divided is now entering the final phase of development, and everyone at LucasArts and Sony Online Entertainment is pleased with the game's progress since the beta test program was initiated. Although the game is making good progess LucasArts also says that "to deliver the best possible massively multiplayer experience and ensure stability and breadth of content, LucasArts and Sony Online Entertainment will delay the game's April 15 launch". This will enable us to invest more time into the beta program, and to solicit additional feedback from the tremendous fan base Star Wars Galaxies: An Empire Divided has already developed. No new date has been given, read more for the full press release ...

Worms 3 will utilise the full power afforded by next-generation platforms, featuring ground-breaking fully deformable landscape technology, and will continue the wild humor and intensive, addictive fun that gamers expect from the Worms franchise. Worms 3 will showcase a raft of new gameplay features, while retaining all the familiar chaos of the original titles, complete with bizarre power-ups, loopy weaponry, and crazy cartoon graphics -- in both single and multi-player modes. Check out these 6 new wormelicious screens ..

The year is 2178 and the galaxy is evolving at an alarming pace. Years ago, human scientists introduced a new technology, the “Hyper-drive”, which vastly improved interstellar travel, but instead of forging closer bonds throughout the galaxy, communication between civilizations has ground to a halt. Colonization and a battle for supremacy have become the primary goals but only one race can dominate…and survive. Strategy First has released a new trailer showing off what this game is all about. Read more for download links ...

For those of you who have finished Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell and are craving a fix of your favorite Xbox game: WAIT NO MORE! Beginning today (and NOT yesterday like some other places reported), you can revisit the tense stealth-action of Splinter Cell by simply downloading the Kola Cell mission for Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell from Xbox Live--at no additional charge. But be forewarned! This mission is tough. Real tough. Ubi Soft's Montreal team put a lot of thought into how to best test the skills of the most creative Splinter Cell players. We invite you to guide Sam Fisher through a Georgian warehouse, find cyber-terrorist Philip Masse's computer terminal and steal a sample code. Just don't get caught. If you do, the United States government will disavow any knowledge of your existence.

Mindware Studios has completed its first demo for Cold War and will soon be seeking a publisher for the game during the next few months. Cold War will put the player in the role of Chaser Jones, an American reporter caught in a web of intrigue and conspiracy in the Soviet Union during the 80's. The game will emphasize stealth (much like IGI2 and other recent tactical shooters), and will take you to Eastern European historical settings such as the Red Square, Chernobyl and Baikonur. Check these new screens ...

Syberia II, the sequel of the 2002 Adventure Game of The year, is currently in development at the developer/publisher Montreal-based studios. Microïds is also excited to release today the first images, screenshots and artworks, of Syberia II. The game will be released in the Fall of 2003. Check out these new screens ...

Pirates is broadband only, with high-end hardware specifications for graphics -- a GeForce 3 or better is required in at least a 1GHZ machine, and the game is optimized for the latest DirectX 9.0-class cards. Pirates is being published on-line directly to gamers using Valve's new Steam technology. This is the same delivery system used by Half-Life 2 and Counterstrike 2. Check out the new seaworthy screens ...

MotoGP 2 for Xbox and Xbox Live! offers eight different racing modes including: Stunt, GP, time trial, Training challenges, tag, Live, multi-player & single race, customizable bikes and all of the riders from the real 2002 MotoGP class. Players can create custom riders and race them online at 60 frames per second with up to 16 riders on one track during a single race. Players can also utilize Microsoft's online voice communication to talk trash with the nearest competitor at speeds that will make their voices crack and their knees buckle.

ValuSoft, a division of THQ Inc. today announced the release of Round the World Challenge for PC. Developed by PAN Vision, this action-packed game for kids, and adults alike, is rated "E" for Everyone and will be available at retailers nationwide for $19.99 SRP.

Interplay Entertainment Corp. announced today the company has sold all future interactive entertainment publishing rights to the "Hunter: The Reckoning" franchise to Vivendi Universal Games. Interplay retains the rights to the previously published "Hunter: The Reckoning" titles on Microsoft Xbox and Nintendo GameCube. The "Hunter: The Reckoning" franchise is a property of White Wolf Publishing Inc.

Noted on Bluesnews that the Project Magma Website now offers a new version 1.3.2 patch for Myth II as their first update to Bungie's strategy game, adding carbonization to allowing Myth II to run natively under OS X and a fix for the flashing cursor bug that appears for users of Direct 3D under Windows 2000/XP. "Other improvements include improved keyboard and mouse responsiveness and reduced chat lag. Myth II v1.3.2 is entirely backwards compatible with Myth II v1.3." All this paves the way for their planned release of version 1.4, which will offer significant changes and improvements to the game. Read more for download links ...

The Clan World Network let us know that they are hosting Tournaments in the following games this weekend.

• Battlefield 1942 Conquest 8 Vs. 8 on Friday, March 14 at 8 PM EST
• America's Army 6 Vs. 6 on Saturday, March 15 at 4 PM EST
• Quake 3 CTF OSP on Saturday, March 15 at 8 PM EST.
  
  All Clans and Teams interested in participating can read the rules and sign up here!

The line-up of X-Box live titles has been announced for the March 14th opening of the service. Read more to check out the Euro titles!

Microsoft Corp. which launched an online service in Europe for its Xbox game consoles Thursday, is struggling to win over makers of the top titles. Microsoft, whose Xbox has sold about a sixth as many as Sony Corp.'s PlayStation 2, will launch the Internet service in eight countries without the backing of Electronic Arts Inc., the biggest U.S. computer-game maker, or Tomb Raider creator Eidos Plc... Full scoop at Tribnet.com!

Today several trailers for various games were released. Instead of giving them all their own post, we grouped them and so far there are trailers for :

• XIII (UbiSoft)
• Humvee Assault (Infogrames)
• Line Of Sight : Vietnam (Infogrames)
• Splinter Cell PS2 Intro (UbiSoft)
• Lock On (UbiSoft)
• Tom & Jerry : War Of The Whiskers (UbiSoft)
  
  Read more for download links ...

Hunter: The Reckoning returns to the Xbox with even more frenetic multi-player action than the original game. Based on the gothic fantasy world of White Wolf's pen and paper RPG system, players act as human monster-hunters combining melee, ranged and spell-driven attacks. In Hunter: The Reckoning - Redeemer, the hunt continues as a new Hunter joins the original team of 4 in their fight to save the citizens of Ashcroft from a twisted plot to take over the innocent town. Players battle against hordes of supernatural enemies in single-or multi-player mode - they do whatever it takes to get the job done.

"Kung Fu Chaos" allows up to four people to battle it out on huge interactive movie sets that provide an added challenge to the mayhem. In true Hong Kong style, the combat features over-the-top gigantic leaps, suicidal stunts and multiple-opponent action. Gamers can choose from an outrageous cast of characters, each with unique brawling capabilities.

XIII features a conspiracy of epic proportions, and players will unravel clues behind the story's compelling and mysterious events. XIII includes themes of amnesia, in which players must uncover sinister plots against themselves, the U.S. government, and even the president himself. The only clues players have are the roman numerals XIII tattooed on their shoulder and a key to a safe deposit box in a New York bank.