In 'Playboy: the Mansion' you step into the virtual slippers of world-famous Playboy Founder Hugh Hefner, building Playboy Magazine and the Playboy Mansion into dynamic cultural icons. Gamers also will live the lifestyle, rubbing elbows with stunning women and popular celebrities, and share the mystique of the Mansion by hosting extravagant, exciting parties.

As expected, EA has released the first patch for its recently released Sim game, The Sims 2. This update brings your retail game to v1.0.0.971 and addresses a slew of game crashes and bug fixes (thanks SimsZone). Read more for download links ...

Ubisoft announced today that Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon 2 for the PS2 is available this week at retail outlets across the U.S. Developed by Ubisoft’s Shanghai and Paris studios, Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon 2 for PS2 is the first-ever Clancy game built exclusively from the ground up for that console.

Electronic Arts today announced that "Armies of Exigo" for the PC has begun to ship to retail outlets. "Armies of Exigo" is a grand scale fantasy real-time strategy (RTS) game that smashes the traditional boundaries of the battlefield with epic campaigns taking place simultaneously above ground and below the surface.

SNK NEOGEO USA announced today that the company has shipped its first title for the Nintendo Game Boy Advance, Metal Slug Advance.

Namco announced today that Mr. Driller Drill Spirits has begun shipping to retail outlets nationwide exclusively for the Nintendo DS. Namco has also announced that another favorite franchise title, Ridge Racer DS, will begin shipping the first week of December 2004. Taking advantage of the technology the new platform has to offer, both titles utilize dual-screen support and wireless connectivity to the fullest, providing players with the ultimate Nintendo DS gaming experience.

CDV Software Entertainment announced today that Blitzkrieg: Rolling Thunder, the expansion to CDV's critically acclaimed real-time strategy title, Blitzkrieg, has shipped to North American retail outlets. Blitzkrieg: Rolling Thunder lets gamers experience some of the most dramatic and important battles of WWII.

Ubisoft today announced its plans to launch a new Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six opus on PlayStation 2, Xbox and PC during Spring 2005. The game is being developed by two of Ubisoft's award-winning studios: Red Storm Entertainment, the maker of the original Rainbow Six, & Ubisoft's Montreal Studios. Read more for details, the first 30 screens and even an in-game footage trailer.

Lead a four-man fireteam of US Marines through the perils of authentic, modern urban combat in a Middle-Eastern urban battleground. This is an action-oriented, first-person 3D shooter that is being developed under the direction of the US Marine Corps as a training simulation for use by the Marine Corps. Close Combat: First to Fight is as close as you can get on a computer or Xbox to being a Marine fireteam leader in modern urban combat!

Got Game and Merscom today announced that "Konung 2" for PC has shipped to retail across North America. The game retails for $19.99 and is rated "T" for Teen by the ESRB for Blood and Fantasy.

You don’t like it clean and tidy? You want a dirty, dark and true apocalyptic cyberpunk look? Then you should not miss the free addon turned sequel, 'Neocron 2: Beyond Dome of York,' which adds a completely new city, with among others, a full set of brand new player and clan apartments.

Midway Games announced today that it has acquired Paradox Development, the studio now developing Midway's upcoming videogame, Mortal Kombat: Shaolin Monks.

Back in March, Take-Two CEO Jeffrey Lapin revealed that, even though sales numbers for Max Payne 2 were below expectations, they are planning for a Max Payne 3. Lapin also said it will most like not be ready "for another few years," while Remedy's level designer Mikael Kasurinen claimed they were not working on the game. Time for some rumors now, as Russian Gamemag.ru claims to have received info from an unnamed "insider" that Max Payne 3 could be coming as early as October 17, 2005. No official statement announcing the project has been made, let alone pinning down a specific release date.

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 :

• Nexus: The Jupiter Incident - Trailer

A beautiful young tennis star is murdered just before the start of the US Open Championship and the Police Department is called in to investigate. In Law & Order: Justice Is Served, this is where you come in as you take part in one of TV's most acclaimed police procedural and legal drama series, Law & Order.

EA Europe has released the first patch for Sunflowers' strategy game Knights Of Honor. This patch brings your retail game to v1.03 and adds new singleplayer/multiplayer features and maps, eliminates errors and problems with the balance of units and buildings, as well as the usual bug fixes. Read more for download links ...

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.

Taxi 3 is a high end racing game in which you dash frantically through the city of London in order to pick up and drop off passengers. Xing Interactive have announced Taxi 3 for February 1st 2005, and will be distributed by Atari in some territories and by local distributors in others. Read more to check out the new trailer ...

Sigonyth is a MMORPG seen from the Third Person Perspective view. The action takes place on red hot desertic planet called - yeah, you've guessed it - Sigonyth! You will hear many stories about this place, but one thing can be said for sure -living here is not a piece of cake. Playing your character, you can choose between three races - humans, cyborgs or mutants. So, who are you gonna be on Sigonyth? A miner? A merchant? Maybe a bounty hunter? It's all up to you...

Valve today announced the U.S. Federal District Court in Seattle, WA granted its motion for summary judgment on the matters of Cyber Café Rights and Contractual Limitation of Liability in its copyright infringement suit with Sierra/Vivendi Universal Games. Read more for details ...