SNK announced today that the company has shipped the first home version of the hit arcade title Metal Slug 3 for the Xbox. METAL SLUG 3 will support the Xbox Live leaderboards and is exclusively for the Xbox in North America.

Eidos today announced it has shipped to stores across North America the highly-anticipated Thief: Deadly Shadows for the Xbox and PC. Thief: Deadly Shadows is the third chapter in the Thief saga, which originated the stealth gaming genre. For the first time in Thief franchise history, the game will be available on a game console and will feature a third-person perspective.

EA today announced the release of The Sims Mega Deluxe in North America. The Sims Mega Deluxe combines the original #1 PC game, The Sims, with three of its popular expansion packs: The Sims Livin' Large, The Sims House Party, and The Sims Hot Date. Assembling a staggering 600 items for your Sims to use the first time you play, there's never been a better time to try The Sims.

Soldner: Secret Wars is finished! SOLDNER - Secret Wars is a tactical military multiplayer shooter offering adrenaline-filled action in numerous and varied team-based battles. After years of intensive work, the Wings Simulations development studio's latest title has finally gone gold and is expected to hit European retail shelves May 27th, and North America June 22nd.

Nawar has revealed the first details on Banita, a new RPG offering a deep story line with over 500 locations spanning over 4 contitents to explore, over 45 spells, a vast array of weapons and armor to obtain, and an amazing soundtrack. Read more for details and the first screens...

Check out the following new screens from Encore's 2004 E3 lineup:

• Kreed: Battle For Savitar (PC)
• Homeplanet: Playing With Fire (PC)
• 'GoldenLand: Cold Heaven' (PC)
• GoldenLand (PC)
• Phase: Exodus (PC)
• Neuro (PC)

Check out the following new screens from Encore's 2004 E3 lineup:

• Heroes of the Pacific (PS2/Xbox/PC)
• Soldner: Secret Wars (PC)
• The Suffering (PC)

Lyra Studios announced today that they are in the pre-alpha stages of a new MMORPG they have titled Reclamation. This game promises many things that previously were rare or unheard of in the genre. Reclamation is first and foremost a roleplaying game, where you are encouraged and rewarded for playing your character.

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 :

• HeadHunter: Redemption - Trailer
• Otogi 2 - Trailer
• Vampire The Masquerade: Bloodlines - E3 2004 Trailer
• The Punisher - E3 2004 Trailer
• Medieval Lords - E3 2004 Trailer
• Ground Control: Operation Exodus - Trailer
• F.E.A.R. - Teaser
• D-Day - E3 2004 Trailer
• BloodRayne 2 - E3 2004 Trailer

Xpand Rally races take place in different parts of the world, the player gets to race in different environments – from deserts to polar snows. Techland has today revealed the next of Xpand Rally features – diversity of tracks. 5 different sceneries and over 60 tracks on which players will compete are one of the most important game’s aspects. Read more for some new screens!

Atari today announced it has signed New York Times best-selling author R.A. Salvatore to develop the storyline for its upcoming action adventure video game, Forgotten Realms: Demon Stone, which will also feature the extraordinary talents of actors Patrick Stewart and Michael Clarke Duncan, who will lend their voices to two prominent roles in the video game. Demon Stone, which is scheduled for release in Fall 2004, is set in the popular Dungeons & Dragons world created by Wizards of the Coast. Demon Stone is being developed by Stormfront Studios, creators of The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers, for the PS2 & Xbox.

The game that introduced stealth gameplay is back. Ion Storm has implemented a new 3rd person cinematic action view as well as the classic 1st person perspective from the previous Thief chapters. Breaking and entering, stealing, sabotage, combat, assassination, and setting up ambushes - tasks master thief Garrett is well equipped to perform. 'Thief: Deadly Shadows' ships to stores May 25th, 2004.

Gamers can get the inside scoop on the enigmatic anti-hero Riddick and is escape from the triple max slam with the announcement of the pre-order campaign for The Chronicles of Riddick: Escape from Butcher Bay. Fans who choose to preorder the hotly anticipated Xbox title will receive an exclusive DVD featuring exclusive content such as : mini hint guide, movie trailer, background info and plenty more. Read more for details ...

Ground Control II: Operation Exodus focuses on tactical combat with minimal time spent on resource management. Instead of harvesting resources and building bases, the game keeps the action hot and heavy by immediately rewarding players for accomplishing objectives. This demo includes 2 tutorials and a campaign mission (Calling the Shots) playable as the Northern Star Alliance (thanks GameSpot). Read more for download links ...

While not officially announced yet, word has it that Microsoft's acclaimed tennis title Top Spin is headed for the PC. Oddly enough the game will not be published by Microsoft but rather by Atari. The conversion is being done by the original Xbox developers Power and Magic Dev. No further details are available at this point.

Electronic Arts today announced the Ultima Online 7th Anniversary Edition, commemorating the game's historic seven-year run. The special version of the longest-running online game is currently in development and scheduled for release this summer.

KumaWar has launched its second mission from the military hotspot of Fallujah, Iraq -- Fallujah Abizaid Attack. Based on the February 12, 2004 assassination attempt on General John P. Abizaid, commander of all U.S. forces in the Middle East, Fallujah Abizaid Attack re-creates the General’s narrow escape and the swift counter-attack by America’s 82nd Airborne Division and friendly Iraqi troops as they hunt down the insurgent attackers.

Lawman, under development at Techland, is a FPS taking place in the Wild West times. The game is action driven and the gameplay is based on fast and accurate shooting creating the original feel of those days. The immense sensation and the realistic feel are created by graphics based on Chrome Engine and characteristic feel of the Wild West days created by the soundtrack. Read more for details and screens....

TDK has released a new patch for Synetic's racing game World Racing. This upgrade brings your retail game to v1.5.5 and adds LAN/Internet multiplayer capabilities, and Matrox surroundgaming support. Read more for details and download links ...

Chaos League combines sports, fantasy and brutal, chaotic action on a playing field where the primary objectives are typical but the gameplay is anything but. Players must score points, win games, advance to championship rounds, and of course compete for the ultimate trophy, but Chaos League serves up some extra excitement with its absence of rules, corrupt referees and mythical, powerful opponents.