Techland has launched a Xpand Rally Xtreme demo contest for the best rally driver. Record the best time on the Aces Criteron Stage 2 (Italy) demo map and the winner will receive a Logitech MOMO streering wheel. Read more for details ...

Bust-A-Move Bash!, previously known as Bust-A-Move Revolution, features 10 different characters, including franchise favorites Bub and Bob as well as many new additions.

Sony Europe and Relentless Software today unveiled a new addition to the Buzz! series designed specifically for the schools market. Buzz!: The Schools Quiz combines the quiz format and playability of previous Buzz! titles with bespoke Key Stage 2 National Curriculum content to create a game specifically tailored for educational use in Primary Schools.

JoWooD announced a new distribution partnership with Pinnacle Software who will distribute a number of their titles in the UK, starting with the ski simulation Ski Alpine Racing 2007, the extreme sports game Freak Out: Extreme Freeride and the counter terrorist shooter on The Mark.

NCAA March Madness returns for the 2007 season, offering custom playbooks for each team, an enhanced Dynasty Mode, and other new features.

Blizzard announced that it will co-host special midnight signing events at 4 retail locations in California, and Europe to commemorate the release of WoW: The Burning Crusade. Doors open at midnight on Jan. 15/16, allowing gamers at each location to be among the first to purchase the WoW expansion, and get it signed by Blizzard developers.

Red Mile Entertainment announced the acquisition of the assets of Canadian casual games distro and developer RoverActive Inc.

In CellFactor: Revolution, gamers can manipulate thousands of objects simultaneously, control vehicles and fight against AI-controlled opponents or challenge friends to a match in the networked gameplay modes. CellFactor: Revolution establishes a new standard in physical interaction, combining multiplayer gameplay with massive environmental destruction.

Another day, another batch of game trailers was released. Instead of giving them all their own posts, we grouped them, and so far there are trailers for:

• Age of Conan - CES 2007 Trailer
• Left 4 Dead - Trailer
• War Front: Turning Point - Trailer #7
• Battlestations Midway [X360/PC] - Gameplay Trailer #5
• Shining Force EXA [PS2] - Trailer #2
• Switchfire - Trailer
• 
  
  We will update this throughout the day when new trailers become available. Read more for download links ...

Def Jam: Icon infuses hip-hop music, culture and lifestyle into the gameplay, bringing unique and innovative content to the next generation of gaming.

BioShock is 2K Games' hybrid first-person shooter, in the works over at System Shock 2 developers Irrational Games, combining elements of sci-fi and role-playing genres.

Blizzard has released a small update for its MMORPG World of Warcraft. This v2.0.3 update, requires at least v2.0.x installed, prepares the game for The Burning Crusade expansion, as well as the usual slew of balance/unit tweaks, UI changes, bug and crash fixes...

Yesterday UK publisher G2 Games announced the return of a classic helicopter flight simulation for PC. Enemy Engaged 2 is the sequel to the best selling chopper classic - Enemy Engaged: RAH-66 Comanche Versus Ka-52 Hokum.

Armed Assault is a realistic, combat gaming offering freedom of action and immersive complex environments, blended with a unique touch of total simulation. This demo is set on the southern part of the Sahrani island, includes 3 multiplayer modes, and a variety of vehicles and weapons at your disposal. ArmADemo Build 5114 allows to play the demo as a dedicated server host, and implements various fixes and tweaks.

War Front: Turning Point explores an alternate WWII, one in which Hitler is assassinated in the early days, and you will take command of experimental weapons, prototype vehicles and units rarely seen in strategy games in an attempt to alter or secure its historical outcome. The single-player demo includes a new tutorial, plus 2 single-player missions from the German and American campaigns. We will have the demo available on our fileserver network, Thursday at 9am PST.

Samurai Warriors 2 Empires combines the most exciting aspects of Action, Fighting and Strategy games. At the start of the game Feudal Japan is divided into warring states and it is up to the player to resurrect a nation using equal amounts of strategy and strength!

As promised Epic has released a "house-hold" patch addressing various gfx and voice issues, bugs, crashes, better anti-cheat code, multiplayer adjustments and other tweaks. Logon to Xbox Live, with the game in the tray and you should be prompted to download the patch. Tomorrow Microsoft will release two new multiplayer maps...

An add-on pack for Ship Simulator 2006 is in the works, which will feature a.o. 6 new ships, one of them a giant cruise ship capable of carrying thousands of passengers. All new ships are playable in the 2006 version environments and can be used to create new missions.

Independent design, development and production facility Sniper Studios has hit the floor running with an all star ensemble of industry talent and strategic global partnerships. The first deal the company is announcing is with SEGA of America on a yet to be announced title scheduled for 2007.

Several people have email in to let us know that apparently Microsoft has rolled out a new Xbox 360 update without any prior notification. When you log on to Xbox Live you will be prompted to download the new update which, according to MajorNelson adresses nothing major, just a few performance and stability issues.