Prepare yourself for the most emotionally involving and realistic football management game in history. Championship Manager 4 is the new version of the record-breaking Championship Manager series. Published by Eidos Interactive and developed by Sports Interactive, Championship Manager 4 will be released in March 2003 on PC.

Microsoft Game Studios today announced that gamers will soon have the opportunity to enter the Rise of Nations Sneak Preview Beta Contest for a chance to win one of 1000 copies of the Rise of Nations beta. On Friday, 14th February, fans can sign up at the official site, where complete contest information and official rules can also be found. Winners will be selected from a random drawing from all entries.

Thrustmaster is pleased to introduce its first cordless controller for PlayStation 2: FirestormT Wireless. With a design based on the Firestorm RF for PC, Thrustmaster's new radio frequency gamepad will be available from February 2003, providing gamers with a new level of enjoyment and unprecedented freedom of movement in games.

The team 17's official forum is updated with information about that Worms 3 for the PC is the only version to support online multiplaying (thanks GameSpy). Here is the clip:

At this stage in our schedule, for consoles, no, not unless the publisher really needs it. Simply because it will take at least 6 months extra work - 3 months to implement everything (including specific console interfaces/system link-ups etc) and then at least an additional 3 months testing the online play.

We certainly never planned for GC online since it wasn't on the radar (rumours aside), PS2 was coming too late and XB live wasn't running when we designed the game (and also committed to a publisher schedule).

The PC version was obviously always planned to be online, but just doesn't have the same issues as console (i.e. we know the interface, we don't have hardware submission procedures with).

Purge, delivers a compelling combination of first-person shooter gameplay and RPG character development, immersing players in a strife-torn world that blends science fiction and fantasy. This beta build primarily focuses on optimizes the netcode. All players should see large drop in ping. Player creatable base constructions (Barriers, Generators, Shrines, etc.) should no longer significantly increase ping. Purge 1.3.6 also fixes reported various bugs in Purge. Also, for players who still think Purge is played like typical deathmatch FPS, a new "helper" message system added assist new players to Purge's unique game style. Read more for a detailed fix list and download links (full download and patch).

Yesterday the official site for Sim City 4 was updated with this link for a new patch (thanks Blues).. The patch mainly adressed several game fixes and is now also available as standalone download for people having problems getting it through the website. Read more for details and download links ...

World of Outlaws: Sprint Cars is the imminent dirt track racing simulation by Ratbag and Infogrames that started out as a PS2-only game. Infogrames has just released a playable demo that sports the Knoxville and Lernerville tracks in arcade and multiplayer modes with a choice of two different cars (thanks Gamespot). Read more for details and download links ...

New budget range launched 4 April for Nintendo GameCube, including Luigi's Mansion, Super Smash Bros and the glorious Pikmin. Read more for full pressrelease!

Konami of Europe has confirmed a March 28th release date for the PlayStation 2 version of the highly anticipated Metal Gear Solid 2 Substance - and has also announced that the Sony version of the game will include a DVD of 'The Document of Metal Gear Solid 2' at no extra cost.

And we thought our puns were grim. Still, this Cheshire company reckons it's cracked the old "games for girls" chestnut... A UK Computer Games Company "Nissimo" has created a computer game which is more popular with women than men. Fruitfall is a game so simple that anyone of any age or ability can grasp how to play, with enough of a challenge to keep even the most ardent gamer amused for hours. Sales figures to January 31st 2003 show that female purchasers outnumber males by 3 to 1.

To mark the success of Junglewar: Vietcong gaining over 14,000 signups since its launch in late Dec, PC videogame publishers, Gathering have created a new scenario to keep players entertained until the release of Vietcong on the 21st March 2003 (UK release).

NVIDIA Corporation the worldwide leader in visual processing solutions, and Microsoft Corporation announced today that the companies have settled all issues related to pricing of the Microsoft Xbox GPU (graphics) and MCP (audio and networking) chipset and have ended the arbitration between them. In addition to resolving this pricing dispute, the two companies have agreed to collaborate on future cost reductions for the Xbox. More details will be provided during NVIDIA's quarterly conference call to be held February 13th, 2003.

With just a week to go now before American Conquest hits the shelves,things at CDV are as busy as ever. The latest pre-release news is that there are 10 exclusive new screenshots on their American Conquest: War Of Independence Tournament website. Here is a direct link to the Gallery page.

At the launch of PlayStation 2, Midnight Club redefined the racing genre by moving it from traditional track based racing to a new non-linear racing philosophy that offered players the freedom to choose their own path to victory. Set for release in March 2003, Midnight Club II continues the evolution of the franchise and features brand new tricked out cars, loads of attitude and a truly unprecedented sense of speed as you race through the city streets of LA, Paris and Tokyo. Check out these spiffy new screens ...

Perimeter is a real-time strategy game built on the concept of non-stop terraforming. The gamer will embark on territory seizure by means of especially designed units thus turning it into the principal energy resource. Then the subsequent encircling of the zones with an impenetrable perimeter will follow. Alongside unique terraforming and protecting perimeter opportunities the game provides powerful nanotechnologies, which allow managing groups of modifiable combat units. The necessity of efficient strategic territorial planning and tactical flexibility of combat units make the game appealing to any admirer of strategy genre.

The Official Shadowbane website just released a new event journal detailing the latest episode in the ongoing storyline of the closed beta test. The journal describes the return of an ancient foe to Aerynth known as the Deathless Empire, a group of Elves who are as powerful as they are ruthless. The journal describes how these forces arrived on the beta world, contacted player guilds for possible alliances, and set out to conquer the land known as Tyrranth. The journal contains 15 new Shadowbane screenshots and delivers a working example of Wolfpack Studios' feature character program in action. Read more to check out the screens ...

Take the command of "Axis-of-Good" forces and defeat the secret alliance of "Shadow Clique" on one of 6 distant planets. The rebels decided to seize the power on Earth by first conquering the space colonies, which provide vital energy resources to A.O.G. The war for global domination will unroll on continents, at sea and in the air. Lead your divisions, fleets and air squadrons against those, who dared threaten our freedom and democracy! Check out the new screens ...

Sabotage is a first-person shooter that emphasizes stealth and the art of infiltration. In a futuristic society, dominated by large transnational companies, a man sentenced to death is offered the opportunity to be freed if he is able to sabotage an enemy corporation (thanks Blues). Read more for details and download links ...

Strategy First and Techland have officially entered the race to win the title of “BEST FPS 2003” with Chrome (www.chromethegame.com) Already being compared to such hit titles as Halo, Rainbow Six and Deus Ex…this is definitely a game NOT TO BE MISSED. Today we serve a feature list and some brand new steaming HOT screens ...

Yesterday we announced that 'Top Angler' is finally coming to GameCube (including a trailer)! The hit bass fishing game that made waves on the Playstation2 will be released with improved graphics, animations, and AI for Nintendo's purple box in March of 2003. Today we have some new screens to showcase some of the improvements. Look for much better textures, brighter colors, and greatly improved anti-aliasing. Read more to check out the fishy action!