In Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events, fans follow the Baudelaire orphans as their luck goes from awfully bad to incredibly worse. Based on the popular book series and the upcoming movie starring Jim Carrey, this treacherous tale allows players to experience the eccentric adventures of Violet, Klaus and Sunny Baudelaire.

Gearbox has revealed that its WW2 based FPS title 'Brothers in Arms' will be getting a Limited Edition release. Brothers in Arms is based on a true story and will immerse gamers into the gritty, uncensored and emotionally-charged side of war. The game puts you in the shoes of Sgt. Matt Baker, a D-Day paratrooper squad leader, and asks you to lead the squad as you balance their lives with the success of the mission. The Limited Edition, which comes in a tin box, will have extra's such as exclusive postcards, 8 page book produced by Penny-Arcade.com, introduction to Brothers in Arms Road to Hill 30 letter written by Colonel John Antal as well as an exclusive DVD with soundtrack, documentary, trailers and excerpts from the screenplay.

Get the low-down on high-stakes poker with 12 World Championship Poker games including: Texas Hold'em, Omaha Hold'em, Seven-Card Stud, Five-Card Draw and Pineapple. Players may advance their skills in “Career Mode” as they play their way through over 50 poker tournaments.

S2Games has released a new version of the latest v2.0e patch for its online multiplayer FPS/RTS Savage: Battle for Newerth patch. This full retail patch combines all previous incremental patches into one and includes authentication and server list fixes. The server browser and authentication systems have been completely rewritten. All game servers will now show up correctly (thanks 3DGamers). Read more for detailed fix list and download links ...

The entire Worthplaying team wishes everybody a Happy New Year! We hope everybody had a safe transition from old into new and may 2005 be even better than last year. We here at Worthplaying have tons of exciting new stuff lined up to better serve you all. Behind the scenes, we are working very hard to expand the website in various ways which will start showing in the months ahead. Until then, party on!

The latest PC Gamer issue has revealed the name of Ensemble Studios latest AoE product, as well as the first details. 'Age of Empires III: Age of Discovery' is set in 1500 A.D. and chronicles the Age of Discovery that started around the time that Columbus "discovered" the new world. The single player campaign then follows American history up through 1850. One of the biggest changes is where it will no longer be necesary to drop off gathered resources at specific buildings. In multiplayer mode, you'll be able to choose from among eight different civilizations (so far only the French, Spanish, and British have been confirmed) and there will be, amongst others, free-for-all and team-vs-team matches supporting up to eight players over a LAN or the internet. Age of Empires III: Age of Discovery will have a heavily modified AI system, as well as the latest Havok physics engine (thanks PlanetAoM). We will have more info soon ...

Driven by a hatred of crime bordering on insanity, Frank Castle became The Punisher, a lone vigilante whose mission goes far beyond revenge. Taking on the city’s high-powered crime lords, he wreaks havoc on the corrupt with methods normally reserved for those on the wrong side of the law.Ripped from the pages of the darkest stories in the Marvel Comics’ universe, embrace the world of The Punisher! Where justice ends, Punishment begins!

In Spider-Man 2 you assume the role of the most celebrated super-hero of all time and re-live the movie experience through all new missions featuring unique enemies, objectives and combat maneuvers. Utilizing the touch screen and new controller layout, players can quickly swing, run, jump, solve puzzles, engage in combat and switch to an arsenal of moves on the fly, while patrolling and protecting the city of Manhattan from the nefarious Doc Ock.

Scratches is a gripping first-person mystery adventure game that will keep the players glued to their monitors, with its story full of breathtaking twists and surprises, until the final shocking revelation. Nucleosys has released 2 small teaser demos giving you the chance to wander around in some of the environments featured in the game (thanks 3DGamers). Read more for download links ...

Jurassic Park is a mod, for Ubisoft's FPS Far Cry, based on Spielberg's Jurassic Park movies. This multiplayer alpha includes 3 game modes (FFA, TDM and Capture the Egg/CTE), new models abutted on Jurassic Park, 7 new maps, 2 new weapons, and 1 new vehicle. Read more for download links ...

Ubi Soft could receive government support in its fight against the threat of a takeover by US video games giant Electronic Arts, La Tribune newspaper reported without naming its sources (thanks VE3D). Read more for details ...

Hunted by Dahaka, an immortal incarnation of Fate seeking divine retribution, the Prince embarks upon a path of both carnage and mystery to defy his preordained death. His journey leads to the infernal core of a cursed island stronghold harboring mankind's greatest fears. Only through grim resolve, bitter defiance and the mastery of deadly new combat arts can the Prince rise to a new level of warriorship - and emerge from this ultimate trial with his life.

Another day, another batch of game trailers were released. Instead of giving them all their own posts, we grouped them, and so far there are trailers for :

• F.E.A.R - Trailer
• Star Wolves - Trailer #3

Because of the enormous number of Wish beta applications received (more than 60,000 at the time of this writing), developer Mutable Realms will not enable all beta accounts on January 1 at once. Instead, only enable a number of randomly chosen beta accounts every day, starting January 1. Mutable Realms requires this transition period to better configure our one-world server. By granting access to the beta test in stages, Mutable Realms will allocate resources where they are required.

The latest version of Gran Turismo 4 further demonstrates its mission to provide the most authentic driving simulation available in the marketplace. New features will extend above and beyond just pure automotive racing, providing a unique destination for automotive and PS2 enthusiasts to enjoy car culture in every dimension. As Gran Turismo 4 has just been released in Asia, reports have come in that, although it lacks an official online mode, people have been able to play multiplayer by combining the LAN option and using XLink. It has also become clear that you can export screens to your PC by means of the USB connection and the Le Mans map is included in the game.

Everown is a multiplayer-only game, focused on contesting against your friends over Local Area Network (LAN) or players from all around the world through built-in Internet Matchmaking System. It will be free to try, giving those of you not yet adjusted to online gaming an unique chance to find out that nothing can beat the immersion of battling against a sentient human being instead of a mindless computer drone (thanks Tiscali). Read more for details and screens ...

Another day, another batch of game trailers were released. Instead of giving them all their own posts, we grouped them, and so far there are trailers for :

• MLB 2006 - Trailer
• God of War - Trailer #3
• Splinter Cell: Chaos Theory - Multiplayer Trailer

Online movie site Moviehole is claiming to have word from inside sources that Thomas Jane, who played Frank Castle in The Punisher, is in talks with Paramount to headline the recently announced film version of the game 'Splinter Cell.' To prepare for his role in The Punisher, Thomas Jane trained a few months with the Navy Seals, so a role as Sam Fisher would not be too much of a stretch. In the Splinter Cell movie, Fisher is sent into action when two CIA agents mysteriously disappear in Azerbaijan.

Developed by Mad Doc Software and due for release in the first half of 2005, 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 Sims 2 University is the first expansion pack for the highly-acclaimed The Sims 2, giving players of The Sims 2 the ability to watch their Sims become young adults and put childhood behind them as they settle into an all-new college town to live out their ultimate college fantasy.

Another day, another batch of game trailers were released. Instead of giving them all their own posts, we grouped them, and so far there are trailers for :

• S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Shadow Of Chernobyl - Trailer
• Star Wars: Republic Commando - Trailer

Ubi Soft has yet again released new patches for 1C Maddox's WW2 flight sim Pacific Fighters. This update brings your retail game to v3.03 (for both the standalone and merged installations) and addresses compatibility issues amongst the various language editions, as well as model enhancements, gameplay tweaks, new static objects, and the usual bug and crash fixes. Read more for download links.

"Imperator" is Mythic Entertainment's next-generation Sci-Fi themed MMO currently in development, featuring a thrilling new interplanetary game world based on an alternate history in which Rome never fell.

In Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events, fans follow the Baudelaire orphans as their luck goes from awfully bad to incredibly worse. Based on the popular book series and the upcoming movie starring Jim Carrey, this treacherous tale allows players to experience the eccentric adventures of Violet, Klaus and Sunny Baudelaire.

Merely a month after it was announced by publisher Ignition Entertainment, Mercury is a refreshingly unique game with roots in many genres, has gone gold (thanks Eurogamer). Mercury provides an addictive challenge through its simple gaming mechanic. Players "tilt" each level to maneuver the blobs of mercury, with various switches, platforms, obstacles, and hazards standing between level goals.