Eidos Interactive has joined forces with the Government of Novistrana to offer people the chance to be included in the forthcoming PC strategy-simulation game Republic: The Revolution. An exclusive competition has been set up on the just-launched Novistrana website. Twenty lucky winners will be featured as 'Novistranian' characters and will receive a home address for their character. This will enable them to identify themselves among the thousands of inhabitants of Novistrana. 100 runners-up will also have their surnames assigned to characters in the game. All that's needed to enter the competition is simply to register on the site. The closing date for the competition is April 15th 2003. Winners and runners-up will be notified by 30th April 2003.

Gathering and internal development studio Pop Top Software Inc. along with developer Frog City Software, Inc., today announced that "Tropico 2: Pirate Cove" for the PC has gone gold. The sequel to the top-selling Caribbean simulation, Tropico, Pirate Cove allows players to manage a plunder-based economy on a seventeenth-century pirate island. The game is set to ship April 8th, 2003.

Media Inc. announced today that they will co-publish NASCAR Racing 2003 Season for the Macintosh. The Macintosh conversion of NASCAR Racing 2003 Season is being completed by Westlake Interactive and will feature teams, drivers, sponsors, and every track of the 2003 NASCAR Cup Series. NASCAR Racing 2003 Season features new 3D graphics, an enhanced physics model developed with the input of official NASCAR team engineers, and informative driving aids for both seasoned and novice drivers.

NDL, a leading developer of 3D graphics technology for the computer and video game industry, announced today that it has issued a publishing license of its Gamebryo 3D graphics engine and toolkit to DreamCatcher Interactive. The agreement, which covers multiple game platforms, will allow DreamCatcher's development teams around the world to create unique and compelling computer games for the PC, Xbox, PlayStation2, and GameCube.

PowerVR - a division of Imagination Technologies - is pleased to announce that it will support Crytek's Polybump technology with the PowerVR MBX embedded core. The combination of PowerVR MBX and Polybump can enable the high-end techniques found in the latest games titles, like real per-pixel lighting, even on embedded and mobile devices. Support for Polybump is featured in the PowerVR MBX SDK (Software Development Kit) available to PowerVR MBX licensees and third-party software developers.

Game Ops, the interactive industry's first troubleshooting agency, today announced the launch of a unique new freelancer service designed to address the critical issue of outsourcing in the games development sector. Game Ops retains a number of highly experienced staff across a broad range of disciplines including coding, art & animation, game design, localisation, testing, audio and massively multiplayer gaming.

Requesting reinforcements! There are new battles to be fought and won. Electronic Arts Inc. and Digital Illusions today announced that development is underway on the latest expansion pack for the award-winning Battlefield 1942 PC game series. Battlefield 1942: Secret Weapons of WWII, scheduled for release in fall 2003, will significantly enhance the multiplayer combat experience by bringing the most unique and deadly weapons from the German and Allied laboratories to life on the battlefields of World War II.

The German site GameCaptain let us know that JoWood has just announced "Railroad Giant" an upcoming railroad sim for PC to be released in Germany in September 2003. You find the first two screens here and use Bablefish to translate the announcement from German to English!

CM4 was released on March 28th 2003 by Eidos Interactive. The game, developed by Sports Interactive, is the latest in the best-selling series of football management games which has sold more than 3,000,000 copies worldwide since its initial launch in 1992.

Ground Control 2 : Operation Exodus takes place during the year 2741 AD, roughly 300 years after the events in the original game. The democratic and freedom caring Northern Star Alliance (NSA) is being hard pressed by the warmongering Terran Empire. The war has recently entered a new stage; a brutal and deadly ground war, as the Empire has managed to land their first troopships on the last NSA controlled planet – Morningstar Prime... Read more for a few new screens!

Time of Defiance is a massively multiplayer real time strategy game, with astonishing graphics, based upon many thousands of small floating islands on the remains of the planet of Nespanona. The Cog Tribes are locked into a battle of supremacy with each other. The player takes on the role of one of the Cog tribes and plays against hundreds or thousands of other players to gain control of the Northern Continent. Players expand their empires through exploration, negotiation, war or peace - using the strategies and tactics of their choice. Nicely Crafted Entertainment have now released version 4.427C of Time of Defiance. Read more for download links & detailed fix list ...

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

• Anarchy Online: Shadowlands (FunCom)
• Baldur's Gate Dark Alliance II (Interplay)
• 
  
  Read more for download links ...

Mad Catz Inc. will showcase a full range of innovative video game peripherals at the upcoming SCoRE exhibition, April 13th and 14th, held at the Business Design Centre in Islington. Mad Catz will be situated on stand B44 and will highlight their recently launched Game Boy Advance SP product line, comprising of ten new accessories to enhance the GBA SP gaming experience. Further featured products will include the recently launched Mad Catz Blaster, the first light gun for the Xbox video game system from Microsoft and Mad Catz' popular MicroCON range of control pads and wheels.

EA and Westwood Studios have released another patch for Command & Conquer Generals, bringing their brand-new 3D real-time strategy game first to v1.05. This upgrade addresses stats recording inaccuracies, some exploits and gameplay bugs, general balancing issues, and more (thanks Bluesnews). Read more for detailed fix list and download links ...

Developed by Freeform Interactive LLC, Purge players become members of the Order and the Chosen, with each side seeking elimination of the enemy and individual party survival. Players receive rewards as they win battles and complete objectives throughout gameplay. In addition, Purge offers several map options, innovative weaponry and extensive player customization to enhance the online war experience. A new patch for the retail version has been released bring your game to v1.4.3 addressing a cd protection ussue and improving the netcode by 10%. Read more for download links ...

Stardock has released the first update to Galactic Civilizations bringing your retail game to v1.01a. This upgrade bring a few few features and playability enhancements as well as some compatibility fixes with the GalCiv Metaverse. The update can be downloaded through the ingame Starrdock Central. Read more for detailed fix list ...

Noticed on Gamershell that Razbor Studios released a new demo of Legacy: Dark Shadows, allowing you to try out this upcoming adventure game. This is the second Alpha release and many things are still waiting for full or partial implementation, however, it’s playable and it can give you a glimpse of things to come. What’s inside? "Approximately over half hour of spoken dialogues (still in testing versions and without professional voiceovers), and about 2 hours of game play if you have a walkthrough". Read more for download links ...

Blizzard has released a new update patch for their hit sci-fi RTS game Starcraft and the expansion Brood War bringin your retail game to v1.1. (thanks EvilAvatar). The patch can be auto downloaded through the game updater or read more for download links ...

GMX Media today announced that it has secured the rights to publish the PC Adventure-Strategy title - Northland (aka Cultures 3) in most European territories and North America. Part of a two-title deal signed with Funatics of Germany, Northland is planned for release early July 2003 in Europe and North America. Read more for details and 20+ new screens ...

Enter the world of underground fight clubs through the release of Def Jam VENDETTA for the PS2 and GameCube. Electronic Arts along with Def Jam, the undisputed powerhouse of urban music and lifestyle, are delivering players a unique interactive entertainment experience that features a roster of over 40 characters including 12 playable Def Jam artists: DMX, Method Man, Redman, Ludacris, Capone, N.O.R.E., Scarface, Ghostface Killah, Joe Budden, Keith Murray, WC and DJ Funkmaster Flex. Additionally, the game introduces Def Jam songstress Christina Milian as the temptress Angel.