THQ Inc. today announced that it has entered into a two-property, multi-year publishing agreement with world-renowned PC development studio Relic Entertainment Inc. Creators of critically acclaimed real-time strategy (RTS) titles Homeworld and Impossible Creatures, Relic is regarded as a leader in the RTS genre. Homeworld won PC Gamer magazine's "Game of the Year" honor in 1999 and has franchise sales of more than 1.3 million units worldwide since its release. The first of the two projects included in the agreement is currently in development at Relic and scheduled to release in the second half of 2004. More details on this project will be released later this year.

Silver Creek Entertainment announces the release of Iraqi Most Wanted Solitaire, a free Windows PC Solitaire game combined with the sought-after Iraqi most wanted playing cards that details the Iraqis that the US military is searching for. This solitaire game includes all of the cards from the infamous most wanted deck given to our armed forces. The game makes use of the latest advancements in PC technology to provide America's most played computer game, Solitaire, in a fresh new way.

Nicely Crafted Entertainment Ltd. ("NiCE") today announced that they will be attending this year's Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3) in Los Angeles. NiCE is visiting E3 in association with the Department of Trade and Industry and will be showing their Massively Multiplayer Online Real Time Strategy game Time of Defiance on stand 2340, as well as showing off one of their next generation products behind closed doors.

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

• GTA: Vice City (Rockstar)
• Sims: Superstar (EA)
• Metal Arms: Glitch in the System (Vivendi)
• Fair Strike (Buka)
• Battle Mages (Buka)
• 
  
  Read more for download links ...

Inspired by its celebrated Secret Weapons series of classic World War II flight combat games, LucasArts' Secret Weapons Over Normandy brings the historic air battles of that era to PS2, Xbox, and PC this fall. Secret Weapons Over Normandy presents a dynamic, deeply engaging story-driven flight action experience that puts players in control of authentic World War II aircraft and challenges them to undertake the war's most dangerous missions. Check the new screens ...

Austrian publisher JoWooD has signed a deal with Bigben Interactive which will see Bigben taking over publishing duties on 21 new titles for the PC, PSone and PS2 platforms in Germany, France, Benelux and Switzerland. Among the titles covered by the deal are Spellforce and Soldner: Secret Wars on the PC, while the "Giant" series of simulation games is also covered in the back catalogue of titles signed to Bigben.

This world-builder title is inspired by Universal Pictures and Amblin Entertainment's Jurassic Park franchise-the studio's most successful film franchise. Jurassic Park allows you to fulfill Dr. John Hammond's dream by successfully designing and managing your very own Jurassic Park. Create the most amazing dinosaur theme park the world has ever seen, OR battle your way through 12 intense missions that will truly test your skills against the awesome powers of nature and its most dominant creatures.

Freaky Flyers drops players into the cockpit with the most unique and engaging cast of characters to ever explore, adventure, stunt fly and dogfight in the videogame skies. Intertwining stories and engaging aerial combat add to the excitement throughout completely open and interactive 3-D world environments. Adding to the intensity is multiplayer action that allows gamers to do battle head-to-head in aerial racing combat. Check out the new freaky screens ...

Drop into the ultimate skating challenge with Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 4. Players take on the role of legendary skateboarder Tony Hawk and 13 other athletes as they skate through enormous free roaming levels, choose from 190 progressively harder goals and build their skills to perform 14 of the greatest skateboarding stunts of all time. Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 4 delivers the deepest and most challenging gameplay experience in the Tony Hawk's Pro Skater series. The game's enhanced career mode allows players to earn respect and the chance to take on all new pro goals by conquering a skater-specific Pro Challenge based on each skater's personal history (thanks VE3D). Read more and check out the trailer!

The anticipation is over! Ubi Soft Entertainment today announced that Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell has shipped for the GBA. Game Boy Advance owners can now experience the thrill of the award-winning espionage thriller. Game Boy Advance fans can enjoy the original tension-filled storyline - complete with characters and locations endorsed by famous author Tom Clancy - plus something special just for Nintendo fans. By connecting the GameCube to the GBA and completing the GameCube version, players will be treated to 5 exclusive levels on the GBA.

Northland is a Stand-alone Adventure Strategy game. The exciting plot tells the story of Viking God Loki who tried to take revenge on Godfather Odin for his banishment from Asgard to Earth. For that he abuses our four human heroes with his intrigues and traps. The story begins where the plot of "Cultures 2 - The Gates of Asgard" ended. Read more for some details and download links where to grab the movie goodness ...

In this frenetic, story-driven action game, for the first time ever, players will seamlessly combine dynamic space and ground-based combat. Additional gameplay elements include exploration and investigation. Mace Griffin Bounty Hunter takes place hundreds of years in the future, where both human and alien settlers are rapidly colonizing the galaxy. The player will assume the role of ex-Special Ops officer, Mace Griffin. Against a backdrop of corporate, political and religious intrigue, Mace Griffin is framed for being involved in his comrades' deaths. After spending 10 years in prison, he becomes a Bounty Hunter, a vocation that gives him access to classified information and a means to aggressively pursue his search for the people who framed him.

In this gritty and darkly humorous 3rd person action adventure, players join the courageous Brotherhood of Steel, whose mission is to maintain peace in the grim post-apocalyptic world of Fallout. Battling raiders, mutants and a host of radioactive nightmares, players attempt to save the scattered remnants of the human race. Life is hard, mutation is rampant and the closet thing to law and order is the fusion-powered pistol that you carry on your hip. Read more for some juicy screens ...

Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Chaos Bleeds is a 3rd person action-adventure game based on the successful cult series Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Just like the show, the adventure takes place at ground zero for all things vampire – Sunnydale, California. Developed with the show's writers as a 'lost episode' from season 5, Chaos Bleeds involves an unraveling tale in which a dimensional bleed has been enabled by Pure Evil to consume humanity once and for all. It's up to Buffy and her friends to stop it all from happening...again! Read more to check some screens ...

This first-ever campaign disk for the Xbox video game system from Microsoft will not require players to have a retail copy of the original game to enjoy a new Ghost campaign. Both new recruits and seasoned vets who earned their stripes playing the original Xbox game will enjoy the camaraderie of the shared battlefield. Xbox Live soldiers can experience the intensity of the front lines side-by-side with their battlefield brothers while covering each others' backs and calling out commands using the Xbox Live Communicator headset.

A message on our forum (thanks jmette) let us know that there will be a special launch promotion for Orbz 2.0 “Developer’s Challenge” this Friday night at 8PM Eastern (5PM Pacific). Download the demo and compete online against the developers of the game for a chance to win a free copy of the full retail version. "Orbz is an action/arcade game set in colorful 3D environments. The object of the game is to shoot your orb at targets located throughout 14 distinct courses in a race to score the most points. Game play includes both strategic single-player challenges and intense multi-player action".

Head over to our forum for all information!

Deer Hunter for the PlayStation 2, being developed by Coresoft Inc., features an online component for intense competition with up to eight players in tournament mode. There are also seventeen weapons to choose from including shotguns, rifles and bows, off-road vehicles, a two-player split screen co-op mode and instant replay with slow-motion bullet effect. The new Deer Hunter game on console will give gamers the adventure and excitement they crave, along with the skill and strategy required for a successful hunt. Check 8 new screens ...

Enter the Matrix is the story-within-the-story. It features awesome gunplay and spectacular martial arts that bend the rules of the Matrix, as well as insane driving and stunts, and the chance to pilot the fastest hovercraft in the fleet. This game isn’t just set in the Matrix universe – it’s an integral part of the entire Matrix experience, weaving in and out of the highly anticipated 2nd installment in the film trilogy, The Matrix Reloaded . A fresh batch of screens .. Njoy!

With the creation of the transatlantic railway, built with blood, sweat and tears into the murderous wilderness in 1869, the American dream of freedom and prosperity was finally to be fulfilled. With "Railroad Pioneer" you'll be able to experience all this at close quarters and, at the end of a dramatic journey, leave your mark as a railway magnate in the eventful history of steamers and pioneers. Read more to check out some new screens ...

UbiSoft has now released an updated Euro patch for their stealth third-person action game Splinter Cell, bringing your Euro ONLY edition to v1.2b. This release implements essentially the same as the original v1.2 with the addition of a small diagnostic tool that was left out of the first one, as well as a variety of graphics enhancements and fixes, as well as gameplay tweaks and other bug fixes (thanks 3DGamers). Read more for details and download links ...

SUNFLOWERS will be presenting their new product line-up in a pleasant ambience behind closed doors at the E3 2003. The publisher's meeting rooms can be found in Kentia Hall. In addition to the Austrian development team Max Design SUNFLOWERS are currently working with the Berlin-based SEK team and Bulgaria's Black Sea Studios. This year's E3 will feature exclusive sneak previews of new projects from both SEK and Black Sea Studios. Hit title ANNO 1503 - The New World remains in the news at the fair: initial details on the planned add-on will be released. SUNFLOWERS also reserves the right to hold the odd surprise in store.

A space combat simulation, with an epic story. Wing Commander Prophecy features a memorable, diverse cast of characters who will live or die, depending on how well you fight alongside them in the game's classic deep-space dogfights. Featuring a branching campaign that can take several completely separate courses, depending on your success or failure in your missions. Your actions determine how the story will end.

CNN today tossed up a pretty interesting article about Half-Life 2 that is under developement by Valve and will be published again by Vivendi. The story includes some game information / features and also some new screens. Here is a small clip:

You are once again Gordon Freeman," described Gabe Newell, managing director and co-founder of Valve. "You are awakened in the future. Several of the characters from [the original game] are back, including Barney the security guard, the G-Man, about whom you learn more and in whose employ you now are, and several of the scientists. There are new characters as well, most prominently Alyx, whose mother was killed during the events of the original game. The story is once again conveyed entirely within the course of playing the game.

Full article here!

Shrapnel Games is extremely pleased to announce that the very first game in Shrapnel's upcoming line of boardgames, Mark H. Walker's Lock 'N Load, has been endorsed by the National Vietnam Veterans Art Museum (NVVAM), located in Chicago, Illinois. NVVAM's collection began in the late '70s and has since grown to over one thousand works of art done by over 130 artists. While most artists are American almost every group that was touched in some way by the Vietnam War is represented, from Cambodians to former Viet Cong.

Atari announced today the development of a videogame based on "Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines," the upcoming summer blockbuster motion picture from Intermedia, IMF and C-2 Pictures, scheduled for nationwide release by Warner Bros. Pictures on July 2. The film will also be released overseas through Columbia TriStar Film Distributors International and in Japan by Toho Towa. A first-person action game currently in development for all major console gaming platforms, "Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines" will -- for the first time on next-generation console systems -- allow players to become the Terminator Series signature icon, Arnold Schwarzenegger as the original Terminator. This marks the first time Arnold Schwarzenegger's voice and likeness has ever appeared in a home videogame.