EA officially announced The Battle for Middle-earth II: The Rise of the Witch-king, enhancing every existing feature and offering players the chance to command the rise of evil in Middle-earth while experiencing the epic battles that took place before those depicted in the films.

Eidos today released the first details of its intense action title Kane and Lynch: Dead Men. Currently in development by Hitman developers IO Interactive. Kane and Lynch: Dead Men will be released in 2007 initially for the X360 and PC.

Ritual Entertainment has just released the SDK for 'SiN Episodes: Emergence' over Steam. The SDK allows players to create new single-player levels, new Arena Mode maps, and additional content for the 'SiN Episodes' universe. The SDK can be installed from the Tools tab inside the Steam client.

Storm Eagle Studios announced that its debut title, Distant Guns: The Russo-Japanese War at Sea, has gone gold, delivering all the action you would expect from a top notch 3D simulation combined with all the detail you would expect from a serious historical simulation.

Galactic Civilizations II takes place in the distant future, when mankind has become a space-faring civilization and must contend with other extraterrestrial powers for domination of the galaxy. Stardock has released a v1.2 retail patch, which includes a few more updates and corrections. This updated version now support the French edition of the game (thanks Patches).

In East India Company, players will enjoy building the world's most powerful trading empire and engaging in fierce battles in both single-player and multiplayer modes, all within a breathtaking cinematic environment.

Sony Computer Entertainment America today announced that the first “Greatest Hits” for the PSP are now available. PSP owners can pick up five of the most popular first-party titles – Ape Escape: On the Loose, ATV Offroad Fury: Blazin' Trails, Hot Shots Golf: Open Tee, Twisted Metal: Head On, or Wipeout Pure – for $19.99 SRP.

After two episodes on the PS2, Zone of the Enders, created by MGS' Hideo Kojima, is making its debut on the PSP according the Japanese magazine Dengeki. Konami will be publishing it, but so far there are no further details, let alone a possible release date, or if it'll make it outside of Japan to begin with.

EA today announced it has reached an agreement with Korean NOWCOM to license Tales Runner, its first multiplayer advanced casual game, for distribution in Mainland China through its publisher Guangdong Tian Yue Network Technology Development.

Gears of War blends the best of tactical action games with the best of survival horror titles, thrusting gamers into the harrowing story of humankind's battle for survival against the Locust Horde, creating cinematic, high-definition visuals so intense and powerful, it feels like the gamers are controlling a blockbuster action movie.

Nintendo North America today revealed its non-Wii release lineup for the rest of 2006. While the new Wii console will arrive in the fourth quarter of 2006, Nintendo has plenty of other things to keep people busy until then, such as Yoshi’s Island 2, and Elite Beat Agents.

Epic's Mark Rein has put up a message in the Epic chat boards stating that a "BIG announcement coming next week!" While of course no details were provided, when one user hinted it might be about the release date, Mark Rein commented "maybe the announcement that is going to be made isn't what you think it is." User speculation has been rampant from GoW going gold, release date, to possibly multiplayer or other info about Epic's upcoming visceral shooter. To be continued ...

At Comic-con an EA representative revealed that, not surprisingly, an add-on for the PC edition of Battle for Middle-earth 2 is in the works. The Rise of the Witch-king is set prior to the War of the Ring, and will feature new armor, buildings, and of course units. While it seems that not too many graphical changes have been made, new powers showed off summoning an ice wolf walking on two legs. More details should follow later this week...

BFME 2 takes part in the North where a battle is raging between Sauron's forces vs. elves and dwarves. It will be possible to create/customize your own hero, apart from known figures such as Arwen, and become more powerful as you progress in the game. While BFME was all land-based, the sequel will also take the action on the sea, naval battles included.

GiganTour 2006, the brainchild of Megadeth frontman Dave Mustaine, launches in the Northeast and will work its way through 25 major markets before wrapping in mid-October, with Xbox's "Gears of War" sponsoring the trek.

After more than a decade, various cancellations, legendary dog and rabbit crime-fighting Sam & Max make their return to the gaming scene! Telltale Games is developing a new Sam & Max episodic adventure series, which will debut this October, with new episodes coming every month, starting in December.

While there hasnt been an official announcement yet, Jeanne d'Arc is an all-new RPG in development at Level-5's for the PSP. Set during the 100 Year War between France and England, the game is based on the French heroin Jeanne d'Arc, mixed with spells, monsters and other oddities such as Burning Site and Connection Guard attack moves.

In Crysis, shooter fans will face a new kind of gameplay challenge requiring adaptive tactics and customization of weapons and armor in dynamic, hostile environments as mankind struggles to survive in the face of a horrific alien invasion. Crytek has revealed what it'll take to run this beauty of a game...

Dead Rising is survival horror game, in which you play Frank West, a freelance photographer who has made his way to an idyllic suburban town to get his hands on the scoop. He soon discovers that the town has been overrun with zombies, and while fighting off hordes of gruesome zombies, you have to discover the cause of the disturbing outbreak.

Darwinia developer Introversion announced it will be releasing its eagerly-awaited third title DEFCON in September 2006. DEFCON, inspired by the 1983 cult-classic Wargames, is an online, competitive, multiplayer strategy game based around the theme of global thermonuclear war.

Sony Online Entertainment today announced a licensing agreement with Epic Games to use their Unreal Engine 3 for the development of next-generation console and PC-based games. SOE will utilize this technology for a number of future projects, including the DC Comics-based game currently under development at SOE-Austin.

A stunningly beautiful martial arts drama set in a mythical time and place in the Far East, Heavenly Sword, developed by Ninja Theory, takes players on a roller coaster of emotion and action that truly exploits the potential of gaming as the new artistic entertainment medium.

Konami announced today an official online tournament for its tactical espionage action game, MGS 3: Subsistence to take place between July 29th and September 17th. The tournament will let gamers compete with others nationwide for a chance to win a selection of incredible Metal Gear prizes and top honors as the best players in the country.

Break 'em All offers classic arcade puzzle-solving action as players fight their way through multiple levels and out-duel challenging bosses. Players will control their paddle with pin-point accuracy using the touch-screen and stylus and select from diverse bonus powers to power-up their ball.

Designed with the casual golf fan in mind, Eagle Eye Golf delivers a fun and fast game of links, yet deep enough to challenge even veteran video game golfers.