A few days ago we tossed up the first announcement informing that Lord of the Rings is coming to a game machine near you... Today more details came in.. Electronic Arts officially announced that they have signed an exclusive deal with New Line Cinema to create games based on the upcoming The Lord of the Rings movies.

Earlier today we brought you the new press release from Russian video game developer and publisher, 1C. They are gearing up to make their debut on the North American market with the PC 3D adventure game Jazz and Faust. We just managed to squeeze some screens out of them ..

Square Electronic Arts L.L.C. , the exclusive publisher of all SQUARESOFT products in North America, announced today that FINAL FANTASY X, a PS2 exclusive and the latest installment in the best-selling FINAL FANTASY game series, started shipping to retailers nationwide, weeks earlier than the originally scheduled release of January. Consumers can expect to find the game on retail shelves beginning December 20.

Hired to hunt, paid to kill - Soldier of Fortune - Gold, the best-selling first-person shooter, is coming to PlayStation 2. Codemasters has secured from Majesco Sales Inc the European publishing rights to Raven Software's 18-rated classic.

Remedy Entertainment proudly announced that the award-winning PC title Max Payne has finished its evolution to the PS2 and XBOX gaming platforms. PS2 version was released in the North American market on Dec 10th, whereas the XBOX version of Max Payne was released on Dec 18th.

Codemasters has released a wealth of resources to support its military blockbuster Operation Flashpoint over the winter holidays. A new multiplayer demo, a new Upgrade and Gold Upgrade now available to buy as a download.

The adventures of Captain Janeway and her loyal Voyager crew are to continue on PlayStation 2 in Star Trek: Voyager - Elite Force. Codemasters has secured the European publishing rights to the PlayStation 2 edition of Raven Software's fast-paced first person PC shooter epic from Majesco Sales Inc.

Star Wars Jedi Outcast: Jedi Knight II is a dynamic single and multiplayer action experience that continues the saga of the once powerful Jedi Knight, Kyle Katarn, as he struggles with the power – and dangers – of the Force. We now got five new screenshots, without pesky watermarks for a change!

1503 A.D. scenarios can be pretty exciting. One minute, you've discovered a beautiful island and are about to explore it, the next a massive volcano starts erupting and all your plans are thwarted. Or, your computer opponent hasn't taken any notice of you for ages, when he suddenly decides to establish diplomatic ties with you. Your hitherto peaceful trade routes are suddenly plagued by pirates or you happen upon a mysterious treasure on some idyllic island. So how much work does it involve to ensure that every scenario in 1503 A.D. tells a fascinating story? Read full Developer Diary Here!

A prequel to Konami's upcoming PS2 game, Frogger: The Great Quest, this GBA game focuses on a younger Frogger who must journey to the center of the Temple of the Frog in order to search for the hidden secrets needed to bring his dying swampland home back to life. We now received over 40 screens from this game. Check them out!

Konami of America announced today that it will publish Motocross Maniacs Advance for the Nintendo Game Boy Advance in Spring 2002. This game will have a retail price of $29.99.

Konami of America announced today that it will publish Konami Collector's Series: Arcade Advanced for the Nintendo Game Boy Advance in April 2002. The first in a series of classic Konami game collections, Arcade Advanced will carry a suggested retail price of $29.99.

Take 2 gave us 21 screens from the good looking "expansion" game Tropico: Paradise Island.. There's a new website too. Release date for PC is January 2002. Find out more below. Njoy!

Seems like we missed to post this up a few days back.. Matrix has released five new games that span from Napoleon’s glittering armies to deadly combat above far-flung worlds. “We wanted to give gamers a choice,” says David Heath, Director of Operations for Matrix. “From hard-core wargamers to space strategy enthusiasts, there is something here for everyone.” Read more below to find out more about these new games.

LucasArts Entertainment Company LLC is pleased to announce that STAR WARS Obi-Wan for Microsoft Xbox has been approved for manufacturing and will be in stores later this week! Check out more about this game at the official site.

We got a bit of artwork and a logo from Ubi Soft's upcoming Playstation game, Rayman Rush. All we know is that it's out in March 2002.. Screenshots surely can't be far behind.

Monolith today released a 5 Mb big patch that fix a lot of multiplayer improvements for Aliens vs Predator 2, at the same time they release a new 12 Mb map pack that includes 10 new maps.

Russian video game developer and publisher, 1C, is gearing up to make its debut in the North American market with the PC 3D adventure game Jazz and Faust. Set for release in the second quarter of 2002, Jazz and Faust will feature a rich, innovative storyline and beautiful 3D graphics, which will satisfy game fans that are looking for both qualities in a game rather than just one at the expense of the other.

CSCentral today released a new CounterStrike map pack and it contains 8 high quality maps of wich 4 are exclusively released within the pack. The pack also contains PODbot waypoints for all maps. Sounds interesting? Well find out more, check screens and download it from the official site.

RPGDot today tossed up Divine Divinity Developer Profile #5. This fifth edition, features independent graphic artist, Wouter de Winter. Here is a part of the article:

1) Tell us about yourself. Who are you and what do you do at Larian Studios.

Wouter De Winter is my name, but what does this tell you? Nothing much, apart from that it doesn't sound German. Which is convenient, because that is one of the many things I'm not. I'm also not gay (contrary to popular belief ;) ) Bring it on!