Purge delivers a compelling combination of first-person shooter gameplay and RPG character development, immersing players in a strife-torn world that blends science fiction and fantasy. Although still waiting for the official announcement, Freeform Interactive today announced that their hybrid FPS/RPG powered by the LithTech Talon system, Purge, has gone gold, and will ship to US stores on March 31. Freeform Interactive also announced that a new demo will be released soon.

Mid October 2002 Paradox announced the purchase of 20% in Conan Properties. Only four months later Paradox has executed a definitive agreement to acquire all remaining stock of Conan Properties. There is no doubt that Conan is one of the greatest character franchises in the world. The line up of partners surely tells the strength of the property. A wide range of international companies has been working with Conan over the years. Current licensing deals include a feature film option with Warner Brothers, computer games license with TDK, publishing license with TOR books a comic license with Dark Horse Comics and many other key licensees world wide. This, if anything, shows that the great barbarian is a strong and vital character, says Theodore Bergquist, CEO at Paradox Entertainment.

Xicat Interactive Inc., announced today that BlackStone: Magic and Steel, has shipped and is on store shelves. BlackStone is Xicat’s second Japanese RPG release in three months for the Xbox. “BlackStone: Magic and Steel is a unique fusion of RPG elements and multiplayer hack & slash game play. We’re confident it will be a big title for us this quarter,” says Brad Flack, director of sales at Xicat. BlackStone: Magic and Steel will be available for the Xbox and can be found throughout North America. BlackStone is rated T for blood and violence.

In their immeasurable greed and constant thirst for power, the thirteen most powerful Mages of all time doomed the land, hurling it into an endless spiral of chaos and despair. Entire countries were wiped out in the blink of an eye when the devastating power of the Elements was unleashed – Elements summoned by dark rituals. Continents shattered like glass, the pieces strewn about like leaves in the wind. Huge armies, bound by the the power of ancient runes, brought war and destruction to the lands that survived the initial onslaught. All that was left were a few islands, connected by magic portals.

Electronic Arts and Lionhead Studios once again join forces to ask the question of whether you are an evil or benevolent deity. From the creative mind of industry icon, Peter Molyneux, Black & White 2 for the PC promises to deliver yet another revolutionary Role Playing God game experience. Currently under development, the PC-based title is the true sequel to the highly-acclaimed original PC title, Black & White which was released more than two years ago.

Vivendi Universal Games (VU Games) today announced that it has obtained the exclusive publishing rights for the world-renowned "Hunter: The Reckoning" franchise. Under terms of the agreement, VU Games has assumed worldwide publishing and distribution responsibilities to future game releases based on the multi-year content license from White Wolf Publishing Inc. The publishing rights were purchased from Interplay Entertainment Corp.

Thrustmaster infiltrates Splinter Cell, the long-awaited PlayStation 2 title from Ubi Soft Entertainment, and will be releasing an official Splinter Cell gamepad and cheatcodes. Fans of the cutting-edge spy thriller will be keen to pick up these two special weapons, both of which will be available for the game’s scheduled release at the end of March 2003.

Developed by Big Huge Games, Rise of Nations combines the epic scope and depth of traditional turn-based strategy games with the pulse-pounding thrill and speed of RTS games, providing unprecedented excitement while maintaining rich gameplay. The game allows players to create new cities, improve their city infrastructure and expand national borders. Read more for a batch of 15 brand new screens ...

Electronic Arts has released a new patch for Medal of Honor: Allied Assault Spearhead, bringing the World War II FPS expansion by EA Pacific to v2.15. This release includes a sizable list of improvements, tweaks and bug fixes. Read more for detailed fix list and download links ...

Vivendi Universal & Interplay today announced that Run Like Hell for the Xbox has gone gold. This expanded Xbox version of the survival horror game includes an additional "hydroponics" level, five additional rooms and several new bloodthirsty creatures. Dolby Digital 5.1 and High-definition (HDTV) will be supported in game, and additional mini games and skins will be available at launch via Xbox Live. Run Like Hell is scheduled to ship to retail in early April.