Anti-violent video game activist Jack Thompson has today filed a lawsuit to force Take-Two to give him a copy of its school violence simulation, Bully, before its October 1, 2006, release date. Thompson claims that Take-Two has a history of downplaying the violence in its titles and therefore wants to see the game and judge for himself.

British rock stars Duran Duran announced today that they have commissioned their own custom-designed avatars who will live on a fantasy luxury island inside the online virtual world of Second Life. Their virtual counterparts will hold "in-world" concerts and media appearances taking place alongside the band's media, public and live engagements in the real world.

NCsoft reported Q2 2006 sales of US $88.6M – a 10% increase over Q1, thanks to Guild Wars Factions – and net loss of US $207,000. Sales for Q2 increased 7% from the same period last year, while operating and pre-tax income declined 90% and 79%, respectively, mainly due to sluggish sales of Auto Assault.

Another day, another batch of games shipped to stores. Instead of giving them all their own posts, we grouped them, and so far there are announcements for:

• Dungeon Siege II: Broken World (PC)
• 
  
  We will update this throughout the day when new announcements become available. Read more for details ...

Midway today announced financial results for the second quarter ended June 30, 2006. Quarterly net revenue was $25.9M, compared to $36.9M at the same time last year, and net loss clocked in at $31M, which is a small increase over the previous year's Q2 loss of $29.9M. Midway anticipates similar numbers for Q3 but expects Mortal Kombat: Armageddon to buoy Q4 results.

LucasArts presents the first in a series of feature stories about Thrillville. You can expect stories like the one that follow approximately once every month from now until the game's release on PS2, PSP and Xbox this November, each article further detailing certain aspects of the game.

EA today announced preliminary financial results for its first fiscal quarter ended June 30, 2006. Net revenue for the first quarter was $413M, up 13 percent compared to $365M for the prior year. However, net loss has increased from $58M to $81M, compared to last year. Among the big sellers for Q1 were 2006 FIFA World Cup and NCAA Football 2007.

Sega Sammy said Friday its profit fell 93 percent in the most recent quarter due to the lack of new models of slot machines. The company identified and closed down some unprofitable venues, while (oddly enough) opening four new ones.

Ubisoft announced sales for the 1st quarter of fiscal year 2006-07, which ended June 30, 2006. Revenue increase from €43M to €70M (62% increase). It was revealed that the launch date for Splinter Cell Double Agent, Dark Messiah of Might & Magic, as well as Resident Evil 4 have all been pushed back to the end of October.

Another day, another batch of games shipped to stores. Instead of giving them all their own posts, we grouped them, and so far there are announcements for:

• Miami Vice: The Game (PSP)
• 
  
  We will update this throughout the day when new announcements become available. Read more for details ...