Square Enix announced today that Musashi: Samurai Legend will ship to retailers nationwide on March 15, 2005. The action role-playing game will be available exclusively for the PlayStation2 and marks the series' debut on the platform. Musashi features vivid, cell-shaded graphics and exhilarating, fast-paced, action-packed gameplay.

Based on the DC Comics/Vertigo Hellblazer graphic novels, the supernatural thriller Constantine tells the story of John Constantine, a man who has literally been to hell and back. Constantine is being developed by Bits Studios and is based on the upcoming Warner Bros. Pictures film starring Keanu Reeves, due in February 2005. SCi has launched the official Constantine website.

Legion Arena is an online RPSG or Role Playing Strategy Game, and blends core gameplay elements from the RTS & RPG genres. Set in ancient Rome, Legion Arena puts the player in charge of their own army, which they must develop, nurture and train, transforming a bunch of peasants into a fearsome fighting force. Check these new screens, showing off the user interface.

Konami of Europe has confirmed the full roster of gameplay additions to the forthcoming PAL versions of Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater. In total, European gamers will enjoy four new elements, unseen in the existing Japanese and US versions of the game. Last December two extras were already revealed, and today a new difficulty level, and a new game mode are added to the mix. Read more for details ...

Hollywood Reporter has word that James Caan and Robert Duvall have joined the late Marlon Brando in providing voice acting and likenesses for EA's The Godfather. Caan and Duvall, who reprise their respective roles as Sonny Corleone and consigliere Tom Hagen from the film, also were involved in the development of the game and are scheduled to attend its premiere unveiling of the game in New York's Little Italy on Feb. 10 (thanks VE3D).

Loockar today released the latest version of its action-packet combat game Water in Fire 2. Hundreds of aircrafts with deadly arsenals on board are spinning around under your head and seem to have only one mission - bomb you back to the Stone Age. Don't give up! Resist! Shield yourself from the barrage of deadly gunfire and shoot them all down to win.

Last Thursday in San Francisco, Konami held their annual Gamers' Day event to announce the games in their 2005 lineup. Arguably the biggest announcement of the event was Castlevania: Curse of Darkness.

The Worms series recently diversified with Worms Forts Under Siege, a tactical RTS-like spin-off created for Sega. However, Worms 4: Mayhem is a return to the series' trademark gameplay and sees Team 17's core Worms design and development team regrouping for a game of explosive annelid annihilation.

Stronghold 2 will bring the the castle-sim and siege-warfare RTS series to life in glorious 3D. Stronghold 2 will also offer players a "castle-life" campaign, enhanced multiplayer capability and a new, innovative and exciting single player campaign that will be revealed in the months ahead. Check out these new screens ...

Reuters is reporting that, citing a conversation with Microsoft management, American Technology Research analyst P.J. McNealy said the company was more likely to take the wraps off its new console in May at the broader Electronic Entertainment Expo in Los Angeles. A Microsoft spokeswoman confirmed McNealy's report that the new Xbox would not be shown off at GDC. Last week's financial results did point out that Microsoft has calculated a "massive advertisement campaign" for, what was described as, a Microsoft branded product, scheduled to run the last four months of 2005.

Ubisoft has released the first patch for Bluebyte's 3D RTS Settlers 5: Heritage of Kings. This update patch brings your German retail version to v1.01 and adds a new multiplayer map, the usual bug and crash fixes, gameplay tweaks, and so forth. Read more for download links ...

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

• Champions : Return to Arms - Trailer #3
• Full Spectrum Warrior - PS2 Trailer
• Nanobreaker - Intro Movie
• Resident Evil: Outbreak File No.2 - Trailer #2
• Rainbow Six 4: Lockdown - Trailer

The furious battle of Pearl Harbor became the first in the sequence of gory sea combats. Now you can take part in all major Pacific battles of the World War II in the Pacific Storm game that is a mixture of RTS, war-game and simulator. All major and important sea battles of World War II, which took place in the Pacific Ocean, are included and you can play either for the USA or Japan. Mine the resources (money, iron and nickel ore, bauxites and oil), train various units and retaliate!

John Slaydon is the lead designer for Rainbow Six Lockdown PS2 at Red Storm Entertainment. Prior to his position with Red Storm, John worked as a game designer and producer at a variety of game companies including Random Games. His areas of expertise on Lockdown have included mission design and game accessibility. Read more to learn about RSL's sniper mode and check out some new screens ...

EA just informed us that EA SPORTS' NASCAR SimRacing has gone gold! NASCAR SimRacing was developed expressly for PC simulation fans and will ship to retail outlets nationwide on Tuesday, February 15th.

The latest and the greatest in the seminal WipEout series, 'Pure' distils the essence of anti-gravity racing and futuristic adrenaline-fuelled combat. Hi-tech weapons, hi-octane speed and a high-tempo dance soundtrack combine to deliver an explosive taste of the future directly into your hands.

Developed by Gust Co., Atelier Iris: Eternal Mana 2 is an SRPG like none other on the PS2. Create your own items and weapons each with unique powers, appearances and abilities. Experience an epic adventure filled with a powerful story and ominous intrigue. Battle vicious monsters where your mastery of weaponry and spells is the only thing between you and ferocious beasts.

Battlefront.com, Inc., and Sonalysts, Inc. announced today that the inaugural title of the Sonalysts Combat Simulations brand, named S.C.S. Dangerous Waters! has now officially gone “gold”. Production begins immediately, and pre-orders are opening today.

THQ and Nickelodeon today announced their 2005 video game lineup. Games based on Nickelodeon's highly rated television series "SpongeBob SquarePants," "The Fairly OddParents" and "Danny Phantom," as well as new installments of Nicktoons and Tak will ship across multiple game systems in 2005.