Jolt Online Gaming is now offering the MMORPG community 100 new beta tester slots in an upcoming behind-closed-doors test of Roma Victor, due to take place in 2005. Read more for details ...

Legacy: Dark Shadows is a point & click adventure with a dark science-fiction storyline spanning a period of 200 years. Legacy: Dark Shadows begins in 1942 with the battle of Stalingrad and ends in the distant future. You will meet more than 50 characters in nearly 100 locations.

JoWooD offers to fans of Stargate the unique opportunity to take on the role of one of the characters in the fascinating world of the Stargate SG-1: The Alliance game. Starting December 22nd and ending on December 31st JoWooD will put up a charity-auction on “Ebay”, the world biggest internet auction house featuring the opportunity to have a virtual double of the highest bidder integrated into the upcoming Stargate SG-1: The Alliance game.

Feel the Magic: XY/XX challenges gamers to switch from tapping and rubbing the touch screen to screaming and blowing into the microphone to control character actions. As unique as the control system, the surreal, humor-driven story follows an "average Joe" who enlists the help of the Rub Rabbits, a suave gang of dramatic performers who wear plastic rabbit ears, to help him capture the attention of a beautiful young woman.

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
• Drakengard 2 - Trailer
• ESPN MLB 2K5 - Trailer
• GTR - Trailer
• Stolen - Trailer #2
• Tenchu: Fatal Shadows - Trailer

GMX Media/Tri Synergy have released a demo for Gameyus' upcoming modern warfare tactical 3D RTS Will of Steel. This demo features one level giving you the chance to wage war. Read more for download links ...

Matrix Games and X1 Software announced today that announced today that The Last Days, the second of two expansions due to release this week for IL-2 Sturmovik, is now available for sale from the Matrix Games website. The Last Days is compatible with the ACE Expansion pack and can be purchased online from the Matrix Games Online Store.

Atari has updated its Act of War: Direct Action website with a countdown timer ticking down towards the release of the public Act of War demo. A quick calculation points out that the release date would be January 13, 2005 and if you are really impatient you can go ahead and sign up to get an email notification as soon as the demo is available (thanks Blues). If you haven't yet, check out our Act of War preview!

Busy evening for the people over at Valve as today it disabled more than 30,000 Steam accounts (a few weeks ago Valve already banned 20,000) which had been used to try to illegally gain access to Valve games without a valid purchase. A new Steam update has been released fixing some some stuttering issues with Half-Life 2 and also addressing missing models when running the Counterstrike Source Video Stress Test.

Digital Jesters has opened up its upcoming Trackmania expansion Speed Up! for beta testing. Head on over to the official Trackmania website and sign up to enter the public beta test for Nadeo's racing game. The beta requires you to have the original TrackMania: Power Up! version. Head on over to the Trackmania website and download the Speed Up! Alpha 3, install, and you are good to go ...

Ubisoft is pleased to announce that Spring’s hottest title, Tom Clancy’s Splinter Cell: Chaos Theory, will be releasing a Limited Collector’s Edition for the PS2, Xbox, GameCube and PC in the U.S. and Canada. Read more for details as well as some new screenage ...

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.

Digital Jesters have announced the launch of the official Bet on Soldier website for its forthcoming FPS, featuring screenshots, movie footage and a dedicated forum on which to chat about the game.

As a holiday gift to Stronghold fans worldwide, Firefly Studios has released Castle Attack 2, a free, fun and terribly addictive downloadable mini-game that gives you a small glimpse at the world of Stronghold 2. Defend your stronghold from maurauding invaders until your castle is finally built. Use burning logs, boiling oil and archers to fend off the enemy.

Buena Vista Interactive today announced that it will publish Tim Burton’s The Nightmare Before Christmas: Oogie’s Revenge for the PS2 and Xbox in North America. The games will release in October 2005 along with BVG’s previously announced Tim Burton’s The Nightmare Before Christmas: The Pumpkin King title for GBA. Capcom will publish the PlayStation 2 title in Europe in 2005.

Created by Texas-based Gearbox Software, Brothers in Arms is the most realistic and authentic WWII shooter ever. While other WWII games have sugarcoated the war experience, Brothers in Arms is based on a true story and will immerse gamers into the gritty, uncensored and emotionally-charged side of war. Ubisoft has launched the official Brothers in Arms website, featuring previously release screenshots, trailers and game info.

In this new episode, you lead Team Rainbow, the world's most elite counter-terrorist unit, as they are called into action and unfamiliar territory to battle a bioterrorist threat. Stakes escalate as they are personally targeted by an evil terrorist organization. Used to protecting the lives of others, Team Rainbow must now embark on a mission to fight and save some of their own.

Publisher Strategy First and developer Mayhem Studios are happy to announce that Shadow Vault has shipped to retailers nationwide.

Battle of Britain 2 "Wings of Victory" recreates the fierce and famous air battles southern England in 1940. The game delivers explosive fun for veteran and casual gamers alike, and occurs over a vast and living world below which will be forever known as one the world's most decisive moments in history.

World Snooker Championship 2005 will be launched at next year's World Championship in April 2005 on the PS2, Xbox, and PC formats. In addition to this, Blade is delighted to announce that it is developing World Snooker Championship for Sony's PSP.

Infinium Labs will demonstrate its flagship Phantom Game Service, built on Microsoft's Windows XP Embedded technology, in the Microsoft booth No. 7145 in the Central Hall of the Las Vegas Convention Center during the Consumer Electronics Show (CES), Thursday to Sunday, Jan. 6 - 9, 2005.

As promised, Starbreeze has now released the level editing tools for its action game The Chronicles of Riddick: Escape from Butcher Bay - Developer's Cut. This v1.10 toolset includes the Riddick GDK which allows you to edit the Riddick levels, but also requires you to have the latest Ogier level editor (v1.3), Starbreeze's game engine (thanks 3DGamers). Read more for details and download links ...

Codename: Panzers thrusts players into the high-powered battles of World War II offering real-time combat rampages with awesome 3D graphics. CDV has released a multilanguage patch for its WW2 based RTS, addressing several singleplayer/multiplayer issues as well as a new feature which allows you to upload a score and compare it with other players' highscores. Read more for download links ...

Matrix Games and X1 Software announced today that Case Blue, the first of two expansions due to release this week for IL-2 Sturmovik (compatible with the ACE Expansion pack), is now available for sale from the Matrix Games website.

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.