Microsoft Corp. is introducing a series of enhancements for its Xbox videogame system, including music software and online-gaming options that underscore the software giant's plans to use videogames to move more broadly into digital entertainment, Tuesday's Wall Street Journal reported.

Presenting to members of the videogame industry assembled for a convention here this week, Microsoft described software that can let consumers record, mix and organize digital music on the Xbox. The company also announced enhancements to its online-gaming service, called Xbox live, that lets players set up online games and check scores from their personal computers and cell phones as well

In an attempt to boost sales and lure more video-game players online, Sony Corp. plans on giving buyers of its PlayStation 2 system a free modem device that previously cost $40.

Sony will now sell its PlayStation 2 standard with its Network Adapter, which allows video-game players to hook up via the Internet to compete with each other. The company didn't specify an exact start date for the promotion, but said it would happen over the summer.

Industry watchers had been uncertain whether Sony would offer any promotion, since PlayStation 2 sales have eclipsed competitors in the game-console arena, Microsoft Corp.'s Xbox

Atari is one of the world's largest interactive entertainment publishers with hundreds of award-winning titles and industry-leading partnerships with Hollywood and other entertainment giants. E3, the video game industry's largest trade show and exhibition, will be held at the Los Angeles Convention Center from May 14-16.

"Atari has been reborn with a lineup of the most entertaining and wide reaching video games available on the market," said Bruno Bonnell, chairman and CEO of Atari. "By joining Hollywood and entertainment partnerships with the industry's best collection of developers, we have positioned Atari as a leader in our industry and an innovator among

Leading Australian games developer Ratbag is planning a sequel to its highly successful Powerslide – the futuristic racing game that propelled the company into the international spotlight five years ago.

Visitors at the E3 games expo in Los Angeles will be given a sneak preview of Powerslide Slipstream, which takes video game motor racing to a new level of intensity and excitement.

In a significant development, Ratbag is self-funding the new game after acquiring publishing rights from Infogrames.

Ratbag Chief Executive Officer, Greg Siegele, says the company has further enhanced its proprietary Difference Engine® technology to provide the new game with even greater

Virtua Fighter 4 Evolution (PS2)

More than 500,000 beatings can’t be wrong…
Prepare for the evolution of fighting as SEGA’s best-selling fighting game gets an upgrade. Say “bye-bye” to jaggies because the graphics have been fully optimized to make better use of the PlayStation 2 hardware. But as any Darwinist will tell you, Evolution is not about looks – it’s about the survival of the fittest. Stakes are raised as

Get the Sam & Max Freelance Police Trailer Off Worthplaying

Spring 2004 marks the return of interactive entertainment's most freakishly adored dog and bunny tag team, as LucasArts unleashes Sam & Max Freelance Police™ onto an unsuspecting Windows PC game buying public. The long-rumored follow up to the critically acclaimed adventure classic Sam & Max Hit the Road plunges Sam & Max into a whimsical miasma of fur-flying action, hare-pulling puzzles, and unnerving cross-species jocularity.

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Vectorman (PS2)

“Vectorman” straps a rocket onto the third-person shooting genre with a nuclear blend of weapon-based combat and “living world” environments.
Gamers become Vectorman, a veritable walking arsenal, in his journey to find his creator, Aura, and free his land from an oppressive robot dictator bent on galactic conquest. The game’s dark storyline is packed with explosive combat and vast opportunities for exploration. With a high-tech arsenal of more

STAR TREK: TACTICAL ASSAULT is a real-time spaceship combat game for 1 or 2 players, featuring a wide array of authentic Star Trek races, ships, and weaponry from the universe of the original Star Trek series. Players take command of powerful Federation and Klingon warships and must outthink and out duel their opponents in order to succeed. Play through either the Federation or Klingon campaigns in single-player mode, or go head-to-head against a friend in wireless multiplayer action. Gameplay in Star Trek: Tactical Assault is about tactics, effective movement, and the use of your ship’s weapons and shields. Success in