Paradox Entertainment and Strategy First today revealed the next eposidoe in their Europa Universalis franchise. Victoria "In Victoria, players will be challenged to lead their nation into the industrial age of the 20th century, ensuring that the country becomes a great power by making sure that it stays ahead of the competition in terms of both wealth and strength. The gameplay will focus on six key aspects of running a country: diplomacy, warfare, economy and industrialization, colonization, technological development, and political simulation." The game is scheduled to be released for the winter holiday season. Read more for details and the first screen...

ePie Games has announced their upcoming Vietnam War game, Vietnam War: Ho Chi Minh Trail (thanks VE3D). It is the year 1970. The flames of war in Vietnam burn on years after French troops are dealt a crushing defeat. American troops, sent into harsh terrain and dense jungle, find themselves embroiled in guerrilla warfare with a cunning enemy that uses the jungle to its advantage. The Ho Chi Minh Trail, a Vietcong transport route snaking through thousands of miles of dense foliage, somehow endures the American saturation bombing campaign, and men and armaments continue to reach southern forces down this vital supply line......

Mad Catz Interactive, Inc. (Amex: MCZ; Toronto), the world's leading third party video game accessory manufacturer, today announced the Company's lineup of new video game accessories to showcase at the Electronic Entertainment Expo taking place at the Los Angeles Convention Center, May 14 -16, 2003. Check out the line-up below!

Electronic Arts today announced that the first expansion pack for SimCity 4, SimCity 4 Rush Hour Expansion Pack* is in development at the company's Walnut Creek-based Maxis studio. SimCity is on the move in SimCity 4 Rush Hour. Players will now have the ultimate level of control over their city's transportation network by completely taking charge of roads, rail, air, waterways, and even vehicles. SimCity 4 Rush Hour will make its debut to industry insiders on May 13th at the Electronic Entertainment Exposition in Los Angeles and is scheduled to ship in fall 2003.

Goblin Commander: Unleash The Horde sets itself apart from other Real-Time Strategy games with fast arcade-style action, richly detailed and destructible environments, and an easy-to-master control scheme designed specifically for console game pads. The project is spearheaded by strategy game developers Ron Millar and Chris Millar, who are known for their work on best-selling titles within the StarCraft, Warcraft and Diablo series. Read more to check out a fresh batch of screens ...

As U.S. Army Sergeant John Baker, players join the battle at Kasserine Pass in North Africa, race to capture Messina in Sicily, and finally repel the German army at the historic battle of Monte Battaglia in the heart of Italy. Armed with a new arsenal of weapons, players will fight alone and with squad mates as they rush to stop the Axis powers. Some more screens ...

Battlefield 1942: Secret Weapons of WWII, the second expansion pack to the highly acclaimed Battlefield 1942 title, significantly enhances the gaming experience by bringing the most bizarre and deadly weapons from the German and Allied laboratories to the Battlefield. From top secret, cutting edge weapons to secret forces and secret places, a new level of drama and excitement will be added to the Battlefield experience. Check these new screens!

In the savage, rough and tumble days of the American West, a hard working, homestead family is attacked by desperados, robbed of their possessions, and left for dead. One lone survivor, a boy named "Red", is taken in by an Indian, given a home and taught the ways of survival. Years later, a mysterious gunfighter appears in town and the lawless begin to fear for their lives. The old West will never be the same as Red fights with honor, seeking vengeance on the savage outlaws of the frontier.

Open your diary and put a big red circle around Friday 13th June. That should be enough to remind you not only to avoid walking under ladders or approaching black cats, but also that Ash is back. And he's back in the biggest bloodiest hack and slash gore-fest imaginable. Ash is the chainsaw-armed hero of Evil Dead: A Fistful of Boomstick: a brand new action adventure title due for release by THQ Inc. on Friday June 13th for both PS2 and Xbox.

Gamespot dug up some info on a, so far unannounced, Activision game from Trokia Games (currently also working on Infogrames' Greyhawk: The Temple of Elemental Evil). Vampire: The Masquerade - Bloodlines, a first person action-RPG, will be using Valve's Source engine which also powers Half-Life2 and is expected somewhere in 2004. In Vampire you will play as a fledgling vampire who will belong to one of seven vampire clans, each of which has its own distinctive strengths and abilities, including superhuman strength and speed, invisibility, and mind control, to name a few. As players progress through the game, they'll earn experience points that they can spend on improving their powers. These abilities and the game's major vampire factions will be drawn from White Wolf's Vampire: The Masquerade pen-and-paper game. Check out the Gamespot article for more details ...

Logitech announced today that the Logitech USB Headset for the PlayStation2 computer entertainment system will be available on retail shelves in the U.S. and at logitech.com later this month for a suggested retail price of $39.95 US.

Interstellar Trader 2, the latest release from Shrapnel Games, now has a patch available that brings the game up to version 1.3. The 422 KB sized patch is available here. The patch includes a wide variety of modifications to the game. While there are the normal changes found in a patch (i.e. stomping out pesky bugs), a number of the revisions are gameplay related.. Read more for a complete list of fixes/additions.

Warner Bros. Consumer Products and DC Comics announced today that Electronic Arts has been awarded the worldwide interactive rights to develop, publish and distribute computer and video games based on the world's greatest super hero, Superman. Financial terms of the deal with Warner Bros. Consumer Products and DC Comics were not disclosed.

Available for free download in Spring 2003, "Insect Invasion" is an add-on MOD for Impossible Creatures, the latest 3-D real-time strategy game from Alex Garden and Relic Entertainment, creators of the critically acclaimed "Homeworld." Building on the popularity of "Impossible Creatures" and its' MOD-friendly engine, Relic ups the ante with 15 new creatures, 9 new abilities and other game enhancements that add even more to Impossible Creatures already unprecedented gameplay features. Check out the new screens!

The official Realms of Torment site is updated with descriptions of the 16 gods of Krel. Realms of Torment is a MMORPG developed by Quad Software and Maxim Software based in Europe for Limitless Horizons Entertainment LLC based in the United States.

Ign.com is offering a new unlocking tool for Relic Entertainments real-time strategy game, Impossible Creatures. This unlocking tool (1.5MB) opens up following ten bonus animals.

• Dolphin
• Garfish
• Horse
• Kangaroo
• Moose
• Rattlesnake
• Raven
• Walrus
• Warthog
• Wooly Mammoth
  
  Read more about it and download it here!

Big waves collide with kick-ass rock on the soundtrack of Activision, Inc.’s upcoming Wakeboarding Unleashed featuring Shaun Murray video game. Eighteen guitar fuelled tracks will be featured when the game is released this summer for the PlayStation2 computer entertainment system and the Xbox video game system from Microsoft. Read more for the full list of artists!

Rebels Prison Escape is a real-time tactical 3D game, ingenious melting of Infiltration, Escape and final Sabotage through 6 original and huge worlds, offering indoor and outdoor levels. You take control of a team of 5 unique characters, each of whom possesses their own individual characteristics and skills to protect. They can use voodoo magical curse, charm, illusionism, sciences but also brute force !

Simergy, Geoff Crammond's game company, has chosen Lost Toys, the highly regarded Guildford based developer, to be its partner on its newest project, Stunt Car Racer Pro (announced 4th March 2003).

Electronic Arts today announced that it has partnered with Digit Magazine to help three lucky people turn their dreams into reality. EA UK Studios, in collaboration with Digit Magazine, are offering the readers of Digit the chance of a lifetime - a job working on the next video game blockbuster within the leading software developer and publisher in the world.

Day of Defeat is a World War II multiplayer first-person action game that pits players in Axis vs. Allies battles in Western Europe at the height of the war in 1944. This is the same version as the upcoming retail boxed version of DoD. Read more for download links ...

Factornews seems to have gotten their hands on some information regarding various Unreal titles. According to some E3 booth schedule Unreal Tournament 2004 will indeed be shown at E3, as well as an Unreal 2 Xbox version and Unreal Assault (formerly known as Reloaded) for the PS2. The Unreal 2004 title is scheduled for the second half of this year (thanks VE3D). I guess we'll find out more at E3...

Unreal 2 is an intense gaming experience that immerses players in an epic story-driven adventure featuring superb graphics. As a Terran Colonial Authority Marshall, you’re patrolling a sector of the frontier with three crew members when an interstellar war erupts about you! Rumors of powerful and ancient alien artifacts have driven rival factions to war in an attempt to find and control the objects. You must locate these artifacts, determine their purpose and restore order to the sector - before it’s too late. Legend Entertainment has finally released a playable demo of Unreal 2: The Awakening. No specific details as to what it contains are available reight now. Read more for download links ...

Michael Vick, the All-Pro quarterback from the Atlanta Falcons and one of the most electrifying and exciting players in the NFL, has reached an agreement with Electronic Arts Inc., the world's leading interactive entertainment software company, to be the EA SPORTS cover athlete and spokesman for Madden NFL 2004. Read more for details and screens ...

THQ today announced that Scooby-Doo! Night of 100 Frights for the PlayStation2 computer entertainment system will be added this spring to Sony Computer Entertainment America's "Greatest Hits" collection -- one of the first third-party titles based on a kids' license to be included. Developed by THQ's internal studio, Heavy Iron Studios, Scooby-Doo! Night of 100 Frights originally launched in May 2002. The game is based on the classic Scooby-Doo! TV series and features its original characters and villains with the celebrity voice talent of Don Knotts, Tim Conway and Tim Curry. Beginning May 1, Scooby-Doo! Night of 100 Frights will be available for the suggested retail price of $19.99 at retail outlets nationwide as part of the "Greatest Hits" program.