Sega Europe announced that NHL Eastside Hockey Manager is available to the public for the first time, today Friday, July 2nd in Europe, with releases to follow in Czech Republic in August, and the US in September. The PC version of the game is also be available as a digital download. Read more for details ...

Techland announced that the work on their racing game Xpand Rally has reached the final stage. The list of features has been closed and now the main focus is on eliminating bugs and tweaking individual elements of the game. Read more for details ...

Wargaming.net announces that Massive Assault: Phantom Renaissance will be published in Russia and ex-USSR states by Akella, one of the leading Russian publishing companies.

Today Slitherine is pleased to announce that Gates of Troy is shipping, 2 weeks ahead of schedule! Any gamers who pre-ordered will have their games dispatched today and any further orders will be dispatched at the earliest opportunity next week. Gates of Troy is a stand-alone expansion for Spartan, the award winning strategy game. Gates of Troy does not require Spartan to be played.

Nadeo's quirky racer TrackMania, and its addon PowerUp!, was enjoyed by all who played it. So it is with great pleasure that - at last – Nadeo has given the green light to unveil the sequel to the people's champion. TrackMania Sunrise, the legitimate heir to the throne, is shifting up a gear. Sunrise moves faster, handles better and features improved air-control – vital for making the massive jumps – to ensure that gameplay never moves at anything less than fast. And it's all about the gameplay.

The World Wildlife Fund would not approve. PETA would stage a protest. Rolf Harris would have to build a cybernetic laboratory into the Animal Hospital. Vivisector, from Brigades, will be the first first-person shooter to feature a menagerie of cyborg-animals for gamers to blow away when released in Europe this October for PC.

As Nick Scryer, players must conquer a programmed super soldier army and its psychic agents while using Psi powers. In addition to Psi capabilities, players have access to traditional weapons such as handguns and automatic weaponry. As players strategically navigate seven huge immersive levels within four distinct compounds, they encounter multiple ways to solve missions, which greatly adds to the replay value.

Memorick, The Apprentice Knight is an innovative 3D action adventure platformer based on the Arthurian legends. The Apprentice Knight unfolds upon the Island of Avalon, a land of magic where anything is possible and home to the Fays, an ancient race led by Morgan le Fay. You will take on the role of Memorick, a 15-year old young boy who chooses to defend his native land from the dark armies raised and trained by Morganna, sister to King Arthur, and her son, Mordred.

In Battlefield 2, players will choose to fight for one of three military superpowers: the United States, China, or the newly formed Middle East Coalition. Armed with the latest modern weaponry, players can take control of any of the game's 30+ vehicles to engage in major conflicts with over 100 players in some of the largest online battles on the PC.

EA SPORTS lights it up in the 13th season of world championship hockey with EA SPORTS NHL 2005. Delivering top shelf gameplay that captures the speed, finesse, and lighting-fast flow of pro hockey, NHL 2005 challenges gamers of all skill levels to lace up their skates and take command of the open ice. Seems EA day today, so check out the new screens & trailer ...

The Battle for Middle-earth utilizes the Generals game engine, and in the game players can select from the different "good" or "evil" campaigns, where they will be given the freedom to command a variety of major armies from the films, each with their own distinct strengths and weaknesses. Check these 6 new screens ...

Electronic Arts today unveiled the highly-anticipated soundtrack for Madden NFL 2005. Featuring an all-star line-up of emerging rock and hip-hop artists, the world’s best-selling football videogame will once again shape the sound of the 2005 football season. The in-game soundtrack features 21 groundbreaking new songs that will rock the music scene this fall. Read more for details ...

Special weekend event! The Saga of Ryzom will be available to the public from Thursday, July 1st to early Monday, July 5th. You just need a community account and the Beta Client (1 GB) to access our server and play the game - and the Tryker civilization will be available! The Open Week-end event will begin at 1700 CET, the hour at which the game servers will allow you access to the Tryker territories! Get more details on the official Saga Of Ryzom website...

Four King of Iron Fist Tournaments fought. Twenty-three million units sold worldwide. Ten years past since Tekken first made history. In 2005, the landmark series returns to revolutionize console fighting one more time. Not much official information available, so read more for some new screens...

'Silent Hunter III' will add new dimensions to the simulation experience. The player will engage in a compelling ocean environment, featuring dynamic weather, and experience the intensity of historical naval warfare. Taking the role of the U-boat commander, players will seek their enemy with sonar and periscope, attack the enemy with torpedoes, destroy them with the deck gun, or command their crew to do the job.

Jowood has released a demo for Metropolis Software's upcoming tactical shooter Gorky Zero. The demo is in German, but since its a shooter non-German people should manage just fine (and be somewhat less confusing than previous Polish demo), features a virtual training level and one full mission (thanks 3DGamers). Read more for download links ...

Yesterday we reported that Sammy's popular 2D fighting game Guilty Gear XX #Reload is headed for the PC, ported by Japan's Media Kite, and today we have the first screens to prove it. Guilty Gear XX #Reload is an updated version of Guilty Gear XX and besides game balance adjustments, it will also feature a new character Robo-Ky, gallery mode, story mode and alternate character versions. No release date or Euro/US distributor has been announced yet. Read more for the first screens ...

New defensive tools allow you to make more plays and be in on all of the action. The all-new Hit Stick lets you lay the big hit to turn the momentum of the game in your favor. With the new Storyline Central, you get the inside scoop around the league from radio host Tony Bruno, along with local and national newspapers, to help you make critical franchise decisions. With groundbreaking graphics that capture the real stadium experience, Madden NFL 2005 continues its 15-year tradition of innovation in video game football.

A few days ago we had a story up about the possibility of StarBreeze/Vivendi bringing Riddick to the PC, today there is confirmation that this is not only true, but that StarBreeze/Vivendi are considering "multiple" sequels. Execs at publisher Vivendi Universal Games are so pleased, they already have a PC version timed for release with the DVD around the holidays and are strongly considering sequels.

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 :

• The Sims 2 - Trailer

Updated from the original classic tactical wargame, Steel Panthers: World At War is fully compatible with all versions of Windows and sports updated graphics, sound effects, unit data and combat models. The new v8.20 updates and expands orders of battle, updates unit data and improves the AI opponent and its selection of forces. A few stability problems were also resolved, leading to the best Steel Panthers: World At War to date! Read more for download links ...

Wargaming has released a new “Twin Islands” planet (specially designed for massive naval battles: two equal continents are separated by sea) as well as another patch for their strategy game Massive Assault bringing your retail game to v1.2.211. This patch is required if you wish to play the new Twin Island planet.

Using characters designed by renowned Japanese artist Kosuke Fujishima, Tales of Symphonia unfolds with beautiful anime-style cel-shaded graphics that make the expansive 3D worlds feel like a 2D comic book. The storyline is an emotionally charged, epic adventure that redefines the role-playing genre. Tales of Symphonia will ship exclusively for the Nintendo GameCube in Summer of 2004. Read more to check out some new screens ...