On Sunday, 8th of November at about 0:30AM industry veteran and CEO of the Spellbound Entertainment Armin Gessert died from a heart attack. Armin had been developing games since 1984 and had risen to fame with the hit titles The Great Giana Sisters and The Great Courts.

Smoking Gun Interactive, formed by ex-Relic people, today launched its first installment of the graphic novel series titled “X”. Written by controversial, award-winning author and social critic Douglas Rushkoff, the series is illustrated by Smoking Gun’s lead concept artist Cheoljoo Lee and Younger Yang.

Sacred 2 is a action-oriented deep fantasy RPG where players are immersed in an epic journey through the medieval-like kingdom of Ancaria featuring pitched battles and a wide range of enticing quests. The Sacred 2 Ice & Blood add-on adds a new character, varied new quests/stories, new in-game items, as well as two new single-player areas with all-new enemies.

Another day, another batch of games shipped to stores. Instead of giving them all their own posts, we grouped them, and so far there are announcements for:

• Shaun White Snowboarding: World Stage (Wii)
• Vegas Party (Wii)
• Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey (NDS/Wii)
• Harvest Moon: Animal Parade (Wii)
• Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 (NDS/Wii/PS3/X360/PC)
• Harvest Moon: Sunshine Islands (NDS)
• For the Glory (PC)
• Dragon Ball: Raging Blast (PS3/X360)
• Dragon Ball Z: Attack of the Saiyans (NDS)
• NBA 2K10 (Wii)
• BUZZ! Quiz World (PS3)
• DJ Star (NDS)

We will update this throughout the day when new announcements become available. Read more for details ...

StarCraft II will feature the return of the Protoss, Terran, and Zerg races. It's overhauled and re-imagined with Blizzard's approach to game balance, and it's designed to be the ultimate competitive RTS game. Earlier this year, Blizzard started accepting sign-ups for a beta that was scheduled to commence in late 2009, which was confirmed a few months later. At the Russian games expo IgroMir, Blizzard producer Chris Sigat supposedly revealed that this was getting pushed to 2010.

Konami has unveiled a terrifying new take on the horror genre, in the form of Hudson Soft’s Calling. Using unique interaction elements, the Wii game features an innovative adventure concept and is driven by its terrifying story and many traps and mysteries.

Based on the upcoming feature film, Astro Boy: The Video Game will allow players to become Astro Boy, a young boy robot with incredible powers who takes to the streets and skies on an epic adventure to save Metro City from the clutches of the evil President Stone and his robot army.

Two Worlds II presents a totally new experience, one in which 2 years of intensive development has enabled quantum leaps in all spheres: completely overhauled AI and balancing standards, experienced authors, the active combat system and the brand-new engine all combine to provide an experience where excitement, sheer enjoyment and graphics rule.

Halfbrick Echoes is an action where you control Charlie, a girl transported to a dream world while studying art, and finds herself in a series of bizarre and surreal levels. You must collect crystals and avoid the deadly Echoes which spawn and follow the player’s previous movements. Gameplay quickly becomes fast-paced strategic action as more complex paths are taken and the Echoes begin to close in!

Wondering what games will be available in stores today? We'll let you know in a few hours, but if the past few weeks are any indication, there should be quite a few — unless everyone is trying to steer clear of the Modern Warfare 2 juggernaut.

We watched the latest Amazing Race episode, and it was good to see that it was a non-elimination round. The remaining teams may not be the strongest that the show has had, but at least they aren't so annoying that you wish they were gone, like a few of the couples from earlier in the race (I'm looking at you, beefy NY lawyer man).

A few weeks ago, we ran an article on Ubisoft sending people on a week-long trip to Italy to check out Assassin's Creed, raising the question of whether such "press tours" are excessive, and it seems there's more "scandal" where that came from.

In a vast open world environment, Assassin's Creed II invites players to incarnate Ezio, a privileged young noble in Renaissance Italy who's been betrayed by the rival ruling families of Italy, and seeking vengeance.

Dragon Age: Origins represents BioWare’s return to its roots, delivering a fusion of elements from existing fantasy works with emotionally-driven narrative, heart-pounding combat, powerful magic abilities and credible digital actors.

Earlier today, EA announced the $300 million acquisition of social network games developer Playfish, but its just-released financial results are less optimistic. Results were better than expected, driven by FIFA 10, Madden 10, The Beatles: Rock Band, and NFS SHIFT, but it posted a loss of $391 million and will close several facilities (Black Box, EA Giburon) and lay off 1,500 employees (EA Mythic), as well as cancel over a dozen titles.

Microsoft has released a new patch for Gearbox/Bungie's first person shooter Halo: Combat Evolved.

In Aliens vs. Predator, players will have the chance to take the role of the three infamous species: the Colonial Marine, the Predator and the Alien. Each of the three species has its very own distinct story-driven, single-player campaign mode that interweaves with the campaigns of the other two species. Being refused a rating by the USK for being too brutal, SEGA refuses to censor the game, and will thus not release it in Germany.

Sacraboar is an RTS game in which players have to capture their opponent's boar trophy. Featuring an intuitive and easy to use resource management system, the game offers fast-paced game play without lengthy and tedious construction phases.

Dante's Inferno is a 3rd action adventure adaptation of the medieval epic poem "The Divine Comedy" by Dante Alighieri, telling the tale of Dante who journeys through the twisted, menacing nine circles of hell in pursuit of his beloved Beatrice.

Resident Evil 5 promises to revolutionize the survival horror series by delivering an unbelievable level of detail, realism and control. During last months Tokyo Game Show RE5 producer Takeuchi revealed the Alternative Edition, adding an additional two hours of brand new content. A few weeks ago Capcom is asking European and North American fans to vote on how they want the new content, on disc or download, and the decision was made today that it will be as DLC.

In Hello Kitty Party, players help Hello Kitty and friends (including Keroppi,  Badtz-Maru, My Melody and others) plan and throw a super fun party. Players can send out personalized party invitations; design and iron the perfect dress; shop for party fare; play puzzles and match games; and dress Hello Kitty in a variety of outfits and accessories.

Borderlands is an all-new sci-fi action game combining elements of first-person action titles with player customization and vehicular combat. The Zombie Island of Dr. Ned is the first in a series of downloadable expansions that will enhance the Borderlands mayhem in fun and exciting ways.

Fans of role playing and strategic games, who are interested in and RPG with round based fighting systems, should keep the name Grotesque Tactics: Evil Heroes in mind. The Wii version has been delayed until 2010, possibly to coincide with an XBLA/PSN version.

Paying homage to the old school look and feel of classic arcade games, NBA Unrivaled brings to the table a contemporary retro design to this generation of HD gaming. Ball your way up to the top of the league and play to your fullest to get the crowd pumped. The fusion of "rhythm" and "puzzle" creates a completely new kind of game in 0D Beat Drop! Drop pieces along with the beat, and go for the win with explosive chains.

Zero Gear is physically-fueled, online multiplayer PC kart combat madness. Deck out your kart and character before jumping into one of many different game modes. Outrageous kinematic gameplay and weapons make every round a blast. The potential for tiny vehicular mayhem has never been so humongous! Boost, flip, spin, and slide your way to victory!

Your Shape is a new fitness title that leverages the technological advances of an entirely new camera for the Wii that will scan your body using Ubisoft's proprietary Body Tracking technology and then project the image onto the TV, creating a personalized and interactive workout.

The ultimate two-man private military team of Salem and Rios return in Army of Two: The 40th Day, where they must survive and prevail in a city under siege, offering a fresh, innovative and fluid co-op experience with a deep arsenal of customizable weapons so players can team up with their friends online for the fight of their lives.