Codemasters announced today that the development of Dragon Empires, the next generation massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG), has entered the first live testing phase, with a focus on the online Player vs. Player combat system. For the development team, this milestone was deemed critical as the combat mode lies at the heart of Dragon Empires, where battles for supremacy in the cities play a primary role in the game.

Electronic Arts today announced plans to release this September the SimCity 4 Deluxe Edition in North America. Players can now make the biggest cities with the most comprehensive and exciting SimCity ever. SimCity 4 Deluxe Edition includes SimCity 4, the best-selling PC game of 2003 to date* and the franchise's first expansion pack, SimCity 4 Rush Hour, that focuses on the #1 most requested feature among fans, transportation. SimCity 4 Rush Hour also is scheduled for release September 2003.

Over 2000 years ago there was a city called Sparta. The city had only two purposes – to train for war and to fight the wars she trained for. Over time Sparta became renowned for having the strongest, fastest, bravest and most deadly fighters in the known world. They were the Spartaites and were feared by all. With these warriors Sparta carved out an Empire for itself –‘Lakedaimon’. However, it was soon to find that its reign was not to be unopposed and other great cities were rising to the fore; Athens, Thebes, Corinth, Macedonia and not to forget the threat from the east – the massive Persian Empire. Can you unite Greece in time to defy the Great King and his mighty Persian Empire?

Egomaniacs launches its new funky site today in preparation for ECTS/GDC Europe. With their unique and professional approach to talent management, coupled with several new and exciting projects, the ego agents look set to continue their meteoric rise. Their business model is simple: they act as Agents for the creative talent in the video games industry. Egomaniacs represent their clients in the same way a sports agent would represent a sports star. "We personally know all the people we represent, giving us a more in depth understanding of their ambitions, skill and personality," said Elliot Hill, co-founder. "It is only in this way that we can offer them true representation. We are always on the prowl." With reference to their continual search for exceptional talent, if you would like to chat to the ego agents then visit their site at www.egomaniacs.biz

NovaLogic Ltd. today announced their plans to hit a new street date of first quarter 2004 for the brand new multiplayer based PC title Joint Operations. "Joint Operations will be NovaLogic's first pan-European release" commented Paul Rebhan, Managing Director of NovaLogic Ltd. "We're looking forward to offering European gamers - the most compelling experience of the modern battlefield ever seen." Set in Indonesia in the near future, Joint Operations takes the player to a country on the verge of disintegration. Regional independence movements have acquired advanced weaponry as the nation's military splits into competing factions. Escalating violence threatens innocent civilians and Western economic interests. Joint Operations will ship during Q1 2004 on PC.

Following the success of "The Evil Mirror" for PSX, PC & GBA, Hugo is now ready and eager to enter the wonderful world of PS2 PC & GBA, the first game being Bukkazoom. Together with his family, friends and sworn enemies, Hugo has been invited to race with his wild and wacky animated carts in the world of the Greenflies. This is a world of slushy swamps, bone-strewn deserts and country landscapes. What makes it more exciting is the fact that Hugo and his companions have been shrunk to the size of the Greenflies. Read more for the screens ....

Inspired by its celebrated Secret Weapons series of classic World War II flight combat games, LucasArts announces Secret Weapons Over Normandy, which brings the historic air battles of that era to PS2, Xbox, and PC this fall. Secret Weapons Over Normandy presents a dynamic, deeply engaging story-driven flight action experience that puts players in control of authentic World War II aircraft and challenges them to undertake the war's most dangerous missions. New screenshots inside, read more to check them out ...

Star Wars Jedi Knight: Jedi Academy is a dynamic single and multiplayer action experience featuring an all-new epic story. Players are immersed in the role of apprentice at Luke Skywalker's Jedi Academy where they learn the power – and danger – of the Force. Amidst a multitude of complex and richly detailed Star Wars environments, including twice as many unique locales as those in Star Wars Jedi Outcast, players face a variety of powerful and insidious enemies. Read more to check them out.....

Tecmo's Team Ninja has always released the Dead or Alive games on the most advanced hardware platforms available at the time the game is made. As a result of this, Dead or Alive 1,2, and 3 have all been released on different platforms. This fall, gamers will have the chance to experience the entire history of the DOA series for the first time on a single console. Tecmo's esteemed internal development group, "Team Ninja" and Microsoft's Xbox will be teaming up to bring the beloved classics Dead or Alive 1 and Dead or Alive 2 to the Xbox in Dead or Alive Online. The new anthology will bring 3D fighting to the masses with full Xbox Live capabilities.

In Squad Assault: West Front, you command troops in both the Allied and German Armies of the West Front of World War II in an immersive full 3-D continuous time environment. Squad Assault: West Front features detailed models for all the major armies that fought in France in 1944, including American, German, British, Canadian, and Free French. For those who prefer traditional turn-oriented play, a user defined auto-pause feature for order entry and battlefield assessment allows for a more thoughtful game. A 2D overhead map view with order entry is also available for those who prefer to see the battle from above. Check the new batch of screens ...

Activision held its yearly Activiate press event in the UK and all the way from oversead we have fresh new visual material. We have screens from Activision's following/upcoming titles :

• Pitfall Harry
• Call Of Duty
• Empire: Dawn Of The Modern World
• Spider Man 2
• Shrek 2
• Rome: Total War
• Vampire The Masquerade: Bloodlines
• True Crime: Streets Of LA
• Tony Hawk Underground
• Disney's Extreme Skate Adventure

The Natural Selection 2.0 Dedicated Linux and Windows Server Files have been released Please keep in mind that these files are only for server operators and cannot be used to play the game. This package contains the win32 and linux files. Read more for download links ...

Another day, another HL2 trailer. Valve unleashed the fifth Half-Life 2 video showing off more gameplay footage from this upcoming FPS. As usual is it a self-running Bink formatted video showing off tunnels. This footage was part of the the original E3 trailer, just in high resolution. Read more for download links ...

Madden NFL 2004 on all 6 platforms - PlayStation 2, Xbox, GameCube, PS One, PC and GameBoy Advance - has gone gold. The game ships to retailers nationwide on Monday, August 11, 2003 and will be available in stores everywhere by Thursday, August 14. In its 14th year and with over 30 million copies sold, Madden NFL Football once again proves its status as the undisputed leader in authentic NFL football simulation. On Madden NFL 2004 check out the all new Playmaker Control, a revolutionary feature that lets gamers adjust on the fly just as NFL players do, a deeper Franchise Mode with Owner Mode options and improved online play for the PlayStation 2 that includes EA SPORTS Talk on a USB headset.

Data Becker today announced a new 3D RTS game called Castle Strike. In development over at Related Design (America and No Man's Land), the game promises to be an intricately detailed 3D re-creation of castle construction and sieges. Set in an authentic rendition of continental Europe during the Hundred Years War, the game will involve players in a fictional tale filled with battles, ambushes, and betrayal and have them assaulting enemy strongholds, seeking out bandit camps, and building up their own fortifications (thanks GameSpot).

Drop into the ultimate skating challenge with Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 4. Players take on the role of legendary skateboarder Tony Hawk and 13 other athletes as they skate through enormous free roaming levels, choose from 190 progressively harder goals and build their skills to perform 14 of the greatest skateboarding stunts of all time. Aspyr today announced that Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 4 have gone gold for PC, as well as Mac. The game is expected in stores on August 14.

Armed with her camera, aikido staff, and resolute investigative skills, Jade sets out to expose the truth and to liberate the minds of her deceived people. Pushed to the very edge of her physical and spiritual will, she soon discovers that even these limits are not what they seem … Her quest for the truth knows no bounds. Check these spiffy new screens ...

A new Far Cry movie is now available showing off more in game action from Crytek's upcoming shooter. This trailer came off the German PC Action magazine (thus having German commentary), nonetheless worth checking out (thanks FarCry Hq). Read more for download links ...

Konami has released the first patch for Hothouse Creations' recent casino game, Casino Inc. This patch allows you to continue playing Casino, Inc in sandbox mode after the completion of all city objectives. It also adresses several bugs, crashes and occasional save issues. Read more for detailed fix list and download links ...