Blizzard Entertainment today announced that World of Warcraft will officially launch in Korea on January 18, 2005. Following a highly successful beta-testing period, the game is now being prepared for availability throughout the country. Once released, players can sign up for various subscription plans and experience the epic adventure of the Warcraft series in an immersive and continually evolving online environment.

Unfurl the banners and lead the charge! All of Tellius is torn in a bloody war, and only you have the means to put it to an end. Take command of a band of mercenaries loyal only to you, and guide them to victory against the forces of the Daein kingdom! Turn-based strategy gives you maximum control of your army. As your characters gain experience, shape their abilities by giving them special skill sets, and develop your army into a unique fighting force.

Based on the DC Comics/Vertigo Hellblazer graphic novels, the supernatural thriller Constantine tells the story of John Constantine, a man who has literally been to hell and back. Constantine is being developed by Bits Studios and is based on the upcoming Warner Bros. Pictures film starring Keanu Reeves, due in February 2005.

Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell Chaos Theory will offer a high adrenaline experience thanks to never seen before close range attacks, a totally open level design, a completely immersive and interactive environment, and challenging advanced AI. Check these new screens ...

IT GlobalSecure announces its new anti-piracy solution, SecurePlay Keeper to be released in the first Quarter 2005. Piracy and game hacking are growing more serious for the computer games industry. In 2004, the biggest industry news issues behind record sales were a series of serious security breaches ranging from software piracy, to code theft, and game cheating.

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 :

• Blitzkrieg 2 - Trailer
• Universal Combat: A World Apart - Trailer

7 Sins is an action-oriented life simulation that immerses mature players in a world of celebrity and greed, where the right relationship can help you claw your way up the career and social ladder. In a game universe where fame and fortune are all that really matter, players charm, finagle, fib, and finesse their way through seven campaigns and over 60 non-linear missions in hopes of reaching the top.

Driven by a hatred of crime bordering on insanity, Frank Castle became The Punisher, a one-man army whose mission goes far beyond revenge. Taking on the city's high-powered crime lords, he wreaks havoc on the corrupt with methods reserved for those on the wrong side of the law. Check these 80+ new screens, and two in-game trailers ..

Based on Luo Guanzhong's historical novel Romance of the Three Kingdoms, the Dynasty Warriors series of action games takes players back in time and onto the battlefields of Ancient China. In the games, players experience the thrill of fighting single-handedly against nearly endless legions of enemy soldiers in historical battles that shaped an empire.

Future Games, previously known for Black Mirror, is working on an all new horror/adventure game, Nibiru: Messenger of the Gods. You take on the role of Martin Holan, an Thechz archeologist working in France sent to investigate a newly found secret tunnel apparently made by Germans during the second World War. Nibiru is a 2D adventure featuring 80 locations, over 30 NPCs, and 50 pages of narrative (thanks demonews.de).

Electronic Arts is considering an interactive TV show that would let viewers control the actions of the characters as in its popular game "The Sims." Will Wright, father of The Sims, has been toying with the idea for quite some time, but it seems to be materializing at last...

Blizzard has released yet another new Warcraft III map, this time called "Goldshire"... Map info: "War and hunger have brought interlopers to Elwynn Forest, endangering the town of Goldshire. Sweep the woods free of this threat so that masons can begin laying the foundation of Stormwind." This is a small map and the suggested no. of players is 1v1 or 2v2. It is based on the "Cityscape" tileset. Go download it here!

Oddworld Stranger features detailed interactive environments set in an enthralling new frontier of the Oddworld universe. Players step into the role of the Stranger, a rough and tumble bounty hunter who tracks down outlaws for moolah. Using a special weapons system that gives a whole new meaning to "live" ammo, players will encounter deviant species and hostile challenges along the way.

Based on Luo Guanzhong's historical novel Romance of the Three Kingdoms, the Dynasty Warriors series of action games takes players back in time and onto the battlefields of Ancient China. In the games, players experience the thrill of fighting single-handedly against nearly endless legions of enemy soldiers in historical battles that shaped an empire. KOEI has released the first section of what promises to be a multipart revealing of the game features.

In Telladar Chronicles: Decline the player will be thrown into the fantasy world of Miere in one of the most tragical moments in the history of the Telladarian Empire - the War of the Seven Nations. You will yourself in the middle of epic battles and tangled intrigues and will guide his heroes through love and hatred, friendship and betrayal, glorious victories and bitter defeats.

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.

Reuters is reporting that U.S. video game sales rose 8 percent in 2004, despite a drop in sales in December due to widespread hardware (PS2/Xbox) shortages, analysts said on Friday. The Xbox outsold the PS2 slightly in the month, analysts said, but both consoles sold fewer units than they did in December 2003

After yesterday's server patch, LucasArts has released a new client patch for Pandemic's sci-fi shooter Star Wars Battlefront. This update brings your retail game to v1.2, and adds mod map names, adds invisibility counter, network code improvements, resolves some balance issues, and regaular fixes. Read more for download links ...

Activision has released the final v1.5b patch for its WW2 based FPS Call of Duty which resolves an exploit that can be used to crash servers. This is a server side only patch. If you do not plan on hosting a server there is no need to download and install it. Read more for download links ...

Project: Snowblind is a the first-person action shooter putting you in the role of an elite super soldier, fighting on the front lines of a near-future war using unique weapons, abilities and high-tech gadgetry that inject depth and variety to gameplay. Read more for new screens and trailers.

Auto Assault combines vehicular combat with role-playing elements. Players explore a post-apocalyptic future in customizable cars, motorcycles, semis and even tanks. Players battle other players both in arenas and in epic race vs. race wars for control of the regions in a devastated Earth. Check the revamped Auto Assault site, or read more for a batch of new 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 :

• Brothers In Arms - Trailer
• Legend of Kay - Trailer #4
• Marc Ecko's Getting Up: Contents Under Pressure - Trailer
• Splinter Cell: Chaos Theory - Developer Diaries (3)
• Starfox Assault - Intro Movie

The official Counter-Strike Bot will be released for Counter-Strike: Source on Monday (January 17th). The Bot features enhanced abilities and will be available for all owners of Counter-Strike: Source. Also included in Monday's release is an updated version de_tides, rebuilt by Turtlerock Studios.

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.