Genre: Action-Adventure
Publisher: 2K Games
Developer: Starbreeze Studios
Release Date: Q1 2007

A Gangster Darkly

The Chronicles of Riddick: Escape from Butcher Bay arrived to a surprisingly loud chorus of acclaim, escaping the curse of being tied to a disappointing film and distinguishing itself as more than just another shooter. It looked good, folks liked it, and it did more for the Riddick franchise than the over-stuffed, big-screen tale of Necromongers gone wild.

The crew that pulled that off, Starbreeze Studios, have set their sites on another mythology now, bringing a next-gen adaptation of Top Cow Productions' The Darkness

Genre: Stealth/Action
Publisher: Konami
Developer: Kojima Productions
Release Date: Winter 2006/07

Since the PSP launched, fans have been clamoring for a Metal Gear on the go.

We have not gotten one.

We have, instead, gotten a smattering of card-based games carrying the Metal Gear name, and while they're supposedly not half-bad, it's still to the dismay of many interested in the franchise. Fortunately, Konami's finally giving so many of the fans what they want. Metal Gear Solid: Portable Ops is exactly what it sounds like – a full-fledged action-based Metal Gear for the PSP.

Genre: Action/Adventure
Publisher: Eidos/Warner Bros. Interactive
Developer: Rocksteady Studios
Release Date: August 25, 2009

Superhero games are a weird genre. On the surface, it seems like it shouldn't be too difficult to come up with a good game, but they have some of the worst records as far as licenses go. Even games that are based on extremely popular characters like Superman or Iron Man tend to be mediocre at very best, but perhaps the greatest surprise here is Batman, whose failure record easily dwarfs his successes. For the last good Batman games, we have to

Genre: Stealth Action
Publisher: Ubisoft
Developer: Ubisoft Montreal
Release Date: September 2006

There are tons of Splinter Cell games, or at least it feels that way. Somehow, Ubisoft can keep a new one hitting every 18 months (or so) and still leave the gameplay feeling fresh and fans satisfied. The upcoming Splinter Cell: Double Agent seems to be no exception to this general rule. Plenty of what goes on in the story and gameplay should feel familiar to fans of the Splinter Cell titles, but there are also some striking differences from previous entries in the

NCsoft’s Team Beam puts you in command of a next generation mech – called an NxG – a humanoid, walking weapon. On Exteel’s futuristic battleground, giant robots are the key to ultimate victory.
Players create a mercenary pilot who grows in experience and rank through PvP battles. Each pilot can customize his or her personal mech using a robust character creation tool. Ultimately, pilots can store several different mechs in a “hangar” and choose which one to take into combat.

The game features easily accessible gameplay in a blend of high-speed tactics and team-based strategy. The animation for the

Guild Wars Factions is the highly anticipated follow-up to Guild Wars®, the critically acclaimed online roleplaying game that revolutionized online gaming with its fresh design, innovative technology and no-subscription-fee pricing.

Developed by Seattle-based studio ArenaNet, Guild Wars Factions takes place on the Asian-inspired continent of Cantha, where new and existing Guild Wars players join an epic quest to defeat an ancient evil and save a war-torn empire.

Players create a character from eight distinct professions—including the newly created Assassin and Ritualist—and become embroiled in a brutal war of conquest between two warring factions, the Luxons and the Kurzicks.

New missions will

Genre: RPG
Publisher: Microsoft Game Studios
Developer: Lionhead Games
Release Date: TBA 2008

Peter Molyneux has earned himself a curious reputation of making promises he can't keep in regards to his unreleased projects, but while the half-hearted backlash hasn't stopped the legendary developer from making prognostications, his most recent one leaves quite a bit of wiggle room.

"Fable 2 will be finished sometime next year... at 4:20 am," he said, opening a guided demo presentation of the massive (and massively anticipated) sequel. "Can't tell you the day, but I can tell you the time."

At least he still has

Get the Hard to be a God trailer off WP (40mb)

The role-playing game Hard to Be a God is based on the book of the same name by the Strugatsky Brothers. The contradiction between Monks and The Grey grows into a total civil war where “everyone is in opposition to each other”. Arkanar separates from the Empire, which decides to alter the situation. For a start, it tries to ferret out the situation in Arkanar and sends spies there. The main character, a graduate of a secret elite school, is one of them. His task is to

Los Angeles, 1979. Players take the role of Kyle Hyde, an ex-cop turned salesman trying to track down a missing friend. Clues lead to an eerie, old hotel rumored to have one very strange room – a room where wishes are granted. Players check in and get ready for a night of surprises as they meet a cast of unusual characters and try to unravel the mystery in Hotel Dusk: Room 215, a gritty new graphic adventure for the Nintendo DS.

• Players hold their Nintendo DS like a book and use the touch screen to grill characters, search for

Genre: Action
Publisher: Sega
Developer: Sonic Team
Release Date: Q4 2008

It's tough being a fan of Sonic the Hedgehog, particularly an older one. You've had to see a series you love slide into craziness. Broken cameras, unoptimized code, unnecessary characters, loss of vision and principle, angst and motorcycles … the list of missteps goes on and on.

At the same time, you get to see the series flourish with a brand and style of gaming that no other company on earth has been able to mimic yet. When a Sonic game gets things right, it really gets