With 18 of the world's most wanted games heading only to Xbox by the end of the year and almost 200 in all, it's going to be a green Christmas in Europe. Titles like Splinter Cell, Blinx, Sega GT 2002, and the Live-enabled Unreal Championship, and Mech Assault have tantalised gamers for months, and they're almost here – but only for Xbox gamers.

The much-anticipated upgrade to the massively multi-player online air combat game Fighter Ace soars into stores as a boxed version for the first time ever, just in time for Thanksgiving missions on the PC.

I noticed that Blues digged up some news about the early build of DOOM III that was leaked last week.. id Software's John Carmack posted some comments on the Slashdot forum. Here is the clip:

No, this was not leaked on purpose.

Yes, we are upset about it, and it will have some impact on how we deal with some companies in the future, but nothing drastic is going to change in terms of what support is going to be available.

Making any judgements from a snapshot intended for a non-interactive demo is ill advised.

John Carmack

Taito has released a trailer for their action game Space Raiders. The movie doesn't feature in-game scenes, but gives you an idea on what the game is about: alien hunt. The title will be released on PS2 later this year and on GameCube in January in Japan (thanks EvilAvatar). Read more links where to grab it ...

Infogrames' one wicked cricket, Zapper is coming November 5 to all next-generation systems - an ideal holiday gift the entire family will enjoy! In this action-packed, addictive character-action game, Zapper, is on a mission to save his brother, make his way through four interactive worlds, each with dangerous hazards he must avoid, eggs he must capture, and all the while meeting both friends and enemies that help and hinder his progress. We have a bunch of PC/PS2/Xbox and Gamecube screens for you to enjoy!

We recently tossed up the 'New World Order' gold announcement from Project Three Interactive a few days back. Now Jim Malmros of Termite Games revealed more information about this tactical first person shooter, such as system requirements and more. Read more for all details!

Scott Cowie, Senior Level Designer at Codemaster, has written up a new developer diary on the colour purple. It's a long story. Anyway, click here for some great info and images! (thanks Blues)

Drome Racers is a multi-terrain racing experience that will leave young speedsters breathless. Players take on the role of Max Axel who has trained intensely for the challenging Drome Championship and wants to take home the trophy.

It is weekend, so slow on the interview side, here are a few :

• Battlefield: 1942 interview on Battle-fields.com
• Final Strike interview with Defensive Games' Mircea Rila on HomeLAN
• The Cult interview on Gamer's Hell

Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic, will debut on the Xbox video game system this fall and release on PC early 2003. Developed by BioWare Corp., the dramatic game features an original story set some 4,000 years prior to the timeframe of the Star Wars films in an era dominated by an epic conflict between the Jedi and the evil Sith.

The first title in the series to take place in the Star Trek: The Next Generation universe, Star Trek Starfleet Command III allows players to take total control of their own ship and crew, and engage in open conflict with the great empires of Star Trek lore. This 26 MB MPEG trailer shows off the exciting ship-to-ship combat that Starfleet Command III has to offer. Download the file (26MB) and play in Windows Media Player.

The story is set in the mine valley of Khorinis. The glorious days of the once productive mines in this small seaside region are long over. Instead, the mines are now akin to a natural prison that is surrounded by an impenetrable magic barrier where slaves eked out their miserable existence.Khorinis is facing an uncertain future. Due to the farmers' decreasing production, more and more of the food deliveries are not taking place, and the stocks diminish continuously. The militia's strength ends at the town gate. Outside the town wall, nobody is safe from the bandits' armed raids. There is war in Khorinis. A civil war.

This is the first patch for Hitman 2: Silent Assassin, bringing the English and German editions of the murderous third-person action game by IO Interactive to version 1.01. This release improves compatibility with CD-ROM drives, enables the game console, and adds some graphical enhancements. Download at 3DGamers (2MB)!

Midway just announced that Defender, an all-new 3-D version of the popular 1980s arcade classic, has shipped for the Xbox and GameCube and will ship on Thursday, Nov. 7th for the Game Boy Advance. Defender is also currently available for the PlayStation2.

There is a new Battlecruiser Millenium patch v.1.0.08 RC23 available for download at the Battlecruiser online site. (thanks VE3D) Here is a clip about this patch:

Since 1.0.07 was released back in March we have been working hard on a number of fixes and significant enhancements and tweaks to BCM. The plan is to release a final stable single patch and then release the free multiplayer patch which we are also working on.

In order to ensure that all known issues are resolved before releasing the multiplayer patch, we have been releasing RC patches to interested parties. Today, the 1.0.08 RC23 has been made available as a wide release. We expect the next patch to be the final 1.0.08 patch and which will replace this RC23. The multiplayer patch will follow after.

Only the right combination of strategy, stealth and fighting will lead to survival, in JoWooD Productions tactical adventure game, K. Hawk - Survival Instinct. In this Action-Adventure, players find themselves in the role of Kitty Hawk, a Navy S.E.A.L. and helicopter pilot who is shot down over an island in the Pacific. During this vicious attack, her boyfriend, Major Jeffrey, is killed. From this moment on, it is Kitty against the world. Today we have 27 new shots that you can check out below!

Tiscali is hosting a 44MB demo today of A.S.K. Homework's upcoming 3D pinball game, Ball Adventures. This demo introduces the quality, the playability and a part of the technical features of the final version.

Sony Online let us know that sign-ups are open for their upcoming massively multiplayer online shooter, Planetside. Just fill out the beta application, and you could be part of the PlanetSide open beta. The beta application will only be available for one week, so be sure to apply by Friday, November 8.

3DGamers today hosting a playable demo of Mafia. "Mafia brings the 1930's underworld to live in this 3rd person 3D action game." The demo is 230MB to grab and let you try out a single mission taken from the full game. Find out more and download it here!