Vivendi Universal Games today announced that Empire Earth II has gone gold and will hit store shelves in the US on Thursday, April 28th. Empire Earth 2 will build upon the award-winning formula of its predecessor by adding features requested both by casual game players interested in a brief spin through history and by more hard core gamers who demand a real-time strategy game that will challenge them for dozens, if not hundreds, of hours.

The latest issue of PC Gamer UK has no less than 10 pages dedicated to what now seems to be a confirmation on the next (and no doubt, one of many) Half-Life 2 expansion pack. Half Life 2: Aftermath will pick up where the original left off and, as has been rumored for a while, will feature an all-new story line with the focus on Alyx, although not necessarily alongside Gordon Freeman. While no release date has been set, strong indications are that it may only be available through Valve's online delivery system, Steam (thanks ve3d). You can read more about it over at EuroGamer, who has reprinted some of the article content.

Microsoft Corp. today unveiled its all-star lineup of award-winning publishers committed to making the leap into the HD Era on Microsoft's next-generation Xbox platform. Read more for details ...

Deep Silver and Stormregion are delighted to announce their cooperation on a real time strategy title using the latest version of the Gepard Engine. Stormregion the creators of the award winning title Codename: Panzers are developing a new AAA game that is to be published worldwide by the expanding games label Deep Silver and exclusively presented to press at E3.

International software publisher Deep Silver are delighted to announce that Singles is back! This time packed with more characters, more locations, more lovin' and more troubles. The sequel to the charismatic 'eye-opening' romantic life-sim focuses on the lives of 3 fun-loving singles that have been brought together under unforeseen circumstances. Singles 2: Triple Trouble releases on May 27th and will be available on PC only for £19.99.

Combining platform, puzzle and adventure elements, players must race against time and other dream travelers in the Dream Champ Tournament to collect stars, sun and moon fragments and become the ultimate Dream Champion. Klonoa 2: Dream Champ Tournament offers five new puzzle-packed worlds where players must use boxes, bomb boxes, switches, goomies, springs and scales in their quest for glory.

Quantic Dream is finalizing initial design documents for two next-generation projects: Omikron 2, the sequel to Quantic Dream's first PC hit, and Infraworld, a new franchise. Both projects are aimed at X-Box 2, PS3 consoles and for PC and will be developed on Quantic Dream's proprietary next gen' engine. The later will offer enhanced physics capabilities through a recently signed partnership with NOVODEX and a range of action orientated features. Talks are also being finalized with major middleware creators to integrate enhanced AI capabilities. They promise more details are to follow shortly ...

Vivendi today announced the development of Crash Tag Team Racing for the PS2, Xbox, GameCube and NDS. Developed by Radical Entertainment, Crash Tag Team Racing will give players a unique racing experience and allow them to continue the adventure on foot with out-of-car action. For the first time ever in a racing game, players will be able to fuse two cars together on the fly to form a super vehicle with the all-new "clashing" technology.

Oxygen Interactive announced today that UK developer Kuju is working on a new FPS 'Conspiracy: Weapons of Mass Destruction.' Using the Fire Warrior engine, Conspiracy: Weapons of Mass Destruction, is under development for PC, PS2 and Xbox, and is scheduled for March 2005. Read more for details and new screens ...

Konami of Europe has announced a collaboration with leading Hip Hop collective D12, and a soundtrack that will feature a wide array of musical talent and styles, for its forthcoming Crime Life: Gang Wars title. Read more for details ...

Revealed on the EBGames website, Namco's action game Dead to Rights is making its debut on a handheld with Dead to Rights: Reckoning. While it has not been offiically announced, the PSP version of the game is scheduled to ship May 1st and is priced at $39.99. Whether this will be an all-new product or a port from either one of the two previous titles is not known at this point. The Dead to Rigths titles are third-person, story-driven action-noir games delivering diverse gameplay mechanics, cinematic style and Hong Kong-inspired action. While Dead to Rights II pre-dates the original title, both games are set in Grant City's underworld where Jack Slate and his deadly K9 partner Shadow battle with various criminal organizations.

Vivisector: Beast Inside developed by Action Forms (creators of Chasm and Carnivores series) is a unique mixture of 3D Action/Horror. The game blends a thrilling interactive story with intense, high-adrenaline action and immerses players in a rich and fascinating storyline.

The latest Famitsu issue reveals that Capcom is already working on the next version of its popular Viewtiful Joe series. Announced for PS2 and Gamecube, Joe VFX Battle is scheduled for release in Japan later this year. According to the article, the new title will take the franchise in a new direction and has been said to be more like Super Smash Bros., but what that really means was not explained. Capcom is also working on Viewtiful Joe Scratch!, but no platform specifications were disclosed ... perhaps a Nintendo DS title?

Midway Games today announced that Unreal Championship 2: the Liandri Conflict, has gone gold and will ship to stores for the Xbox on Monday, April 18, 2005.

SN Systems today announced that it start offering a new service to improve relations between Japanese developers and western publishers. While usually Japanese game developers sell few games outside of Japan and western publishers have sold few western-developed games into Japan, SN Systems Match-Making service hopes to contribute to the increase in Japanese consumer's appetite for all things western.

Set in the seedy underbelly of Las Sombras, players are immersed in an urban setting ruled by a criminal underworld of power, greed and corruption. This intense, urban action game features a twisting storyline filled with betrayal, warring cartels and hard-hitting battles.

Valve's SteamPowered website has been updated with details regarding yet another update for its Counterstrike Source, enabling support for SourceTV, bug gixes, bot adjustments, and the Source Engine gets a few fixes and tweaks as well. Just restart steam for the effects to take place.

The new adventure begins deep beneath the ocean waves! Sea life thrives as players are given the opportunity to create an underwater paradise of dreams. Swim with the whales, ride the turtles, play with the dolphins and feed the manatees. With so much to do and see, players can literally lose themselves to the hypnotic sounds and dazzling lights in a world of humour and mouth-watering animation!

Namco today announced Shogun Warrior: Real Time Conflict for the Nintendo DS. Taking advantage of the unique capabilities of the DS, Shogun Warrior allows players to plot complex battle plans using the system's touch screen and engage in massive wireless multiplayer skirmishes for up to 8 players. Read more for details and screens ...

Deadhunt is a first-person arcade shooter (FPS) game that merges the best features of arcade and FPS action games with fresh ideas and new twists. Read more for details, screens and demo ...

Reuters is confirming the recent rumors that the original James Bond of the big screen, Sean Connery, has agreed to reprise his role as Agent 007 for Electronic Arts' upcoming video game version of From Russia With Love. Connery will record dialogue for the game, and his likeness will appear as it did in MGM's 1963 hit movie, his second outing as the suave British super spy.

Cold Fear is a first action-horror title with both action and horror, delivering an action-packed, tension-filled gaming experience. Players step into the role of Tom Hansen, a U.S. Coast Guard who is sent to board a drifting Russian whaling ship in the middle of a howling storm on the Bering Sea, who will discover there is no safe place here. On this constantly rocking and shifting ship and a mysterious oil rig, players must turn their interactive surroundings to their advantage to take down human enemies – and enemies that aren't human any more - and save their own life.

Epic's Joe Graf has posted in the Epic forum that the game is finished and thus seems to be on track for its April 14 release date. UC2: The Liandri Conflict continues the Unreal franchise on the Xbox and introduces an evolutionary new gameplay style to the traditional FPS genre: acrobatic melee combat. This highly anticipated sequel also features new single-player and multiplayer gameplay, person camera mode and intense melee abilities. Unreal Championship fans can play as any one of 14 characters from the Unreal universe, each with spectacular new Adrenaline Powers that enable new offensive and defensive combos (thanks ve3d).

A Texas-based company is selling a combat simulator to assault forces around the world that offers the ultimate in sensory feedback: a powerful electric shock. VirTra Systems' product places a person in the center of 360-degree screen that displays different scenarios, such as a hostage situation, suicide bombing attempt, and gun fights, among others. If the player isn't quick to kill his enemies, they may fire back and the player will feel it as the game shocks you via a hip attachment (thanks EvilAvatar). Read the full article over at the Sydney Morning Herald...

Brave: The Search for Spirit Dancer, developed by Edinburgh-based VIS entertainment, is a PS2 exclusive 3rd person action adventure that sees you take control of Brave, a young Native American in search of Spirit Dancer, his father and also the greatest Shaman who ever lived. Brave's journey commences when his village comes under attack from the evil Wendigo, who uses his shamanic powers against Brave's tribe.