The Bard's Tale combines the development team's collective knowledge of compelling RPG gameplay with brilliant graphics and major motion picture quality story and dialogue. The Bard's Tale eschews genre cliches in favor of intelligent humor for an original and truly entertaining experience.

SCEE announced today the Autumn launch of Jackie Chan Adventures exclusively for PlayStation2. Developed by Atomic Planet, Jackie Chan Adventures is the only official game for home consoles based on the popular action cartoon series of the same name.

Konami of Europe has announced it will release U Move Super Sports, a fun sports-themed video game developed for use with the EyeToy USB Camera for PlayStation 2, in September.

Van Helsing for GBA offers players a wild adventure filled with frightening creatures, furious combat and daring escapes. With legendary characters like Dracula and The Frankenstein Monster as well as action-packed hand-to-hand and ranged combat, Van Helsing is a must-have for fans of handheld action gaming

Sports Interactive is putting its immediate future on ice, with the announcement that NHL Eastside Hockey Manager will be available to the public for the first time from 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 will also be available as a digital download from the 2nd July, with more details to follow in the coming weeks.

I’m going to take a break from directing my rants towards one development team and instead examine the commitments persistent-world games require, and some steps current and future games are taking to resolve them.

Freeform Interactive has issued yet another patch for their 3D RPG/action game Purge Jihad. This update brings your retail game to v2.1.1 and addresses the usual gameplay enhancements, balance tweaks and bug fixes. Read more for detailed fix list and download links ...

Close Combat: First to Fight is a team-based first-person shooter created under the direction of active-duty United States Marines. Close Combat: First to Fight is being developed by Destineer and Atomic Games, and will be distributed by Take2, expected release date is late 2004.

Hitman: Contracts delivers more action-packed and suspense-filled missions, with a greater variety of ways to make the perfect kill and an increased arsenal of firearms and close-combat weapons. A new graphics engine showcases your 'work' in brutal detail and brings the new locations to life. An improved control system and more gradual learning curve will ensure that the game is accessible to all aspiring hitmen.

Interplay today reported operating results for the first quarter of 2004. Interplay Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Herve Caen also announced the company's strategic decision to enter Massively Multiplayer Online Gaming (MMOG) with Interplay's wholly owned intellectual properties, namely Fallout (thanks Blues). Read more for details ...

'Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon 2' is a first-person shooter game from Red Storm Entertainment, is due for a November release on Nintendo Game Cube and PCs. It’s already attracted North Korea’s attention. In a curt review, one of its government newspapers called the game “proof” of U.S. warmongering. “Through propaganda, entertainment and movies,” read a recent online commentary in the Tongil Newspaper, Americans “have shown everyone their hatred for us. This may be just a game to them now, but a war will not be a game for them later. In war, they will only face miserable defeat and gruesome deaths.” Read the full statement over at Stars & Stripes...

As mentioned in previous community updates, DICE has been hard at work putting the Battlefield Vietnam v1.1 update together for a pending release. Today EA has given more information on some of the tweaks and fixes coming in the new patch. No specific release date has been given yet. Read more for a detailed fix list ...

Earlier this week Namco launched the official 'Street Racing Syndicate' website, and without any announcement the website featured a PC logo, indicating that it was also coming to the PC. Gamespot earlier today got confirmation from a Namco representative that this is indeed true, but no specific release date is available yet. SRS features the hottest rides on asphalt including real licensed vehicles ripped from the authentic world of street racing. The performance of these tricked-out street machines has been modeled realistically with lifelike physics and authentic damage effects that will thrust players into this high-speed world.

It’s the season of the fan. The year of people coming together to celebrate sport. And uniting everyone is ESPN NFL Football, a coupling of 'the most responsive and intense gameplay around' and the richest multi-player gaming experience possible. Everyone is getting in on the action with the help of our innovative V.I.P. system – allowing you to play your friends or the elite as if they were sitting right next to you! So dust off those extra controllers, grab some chairs, and get your game on! Check the new screens & trailers...

Set in the 60s and using the Cold War as its inspiration, Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater forces the player to adopt a number of new skills to survive in Snake's new jungle environment. Danger lurks everywhere as Snake explores the beautifully-realised forests, encampments and rivers, with guards patrolling key routes, dangerous animals to contend with, and the uneven terrain and noisy foliage making the silent approaches the Metal Gear hero is famed for virtually impossible. Check the new screens ...

'Mourning' is an MMORPG is being developed by Quad Software and Maxim Software based in Europe for Limitless Horizons Entertainment LLC based in the United States. Currently in development and scheduled for a spring 2004 release, "Mourning" will take users into a rich online fantasy world. Check out the new screens ...

Gran Turismo 4 further demonstrates its mission to provide the most authentic driving simulation available in the marketplace. New features will extend above and beyond just pure automotive racing, providing a unique destination for automotive and PS2 enthusiasts to enjoy car culture in every dimension – extending that goal will be highlighted through the new "GT Photo Mode."

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 :

• Star Wars: Republic Commando - Trailer
• Lord Of The Rings: Battle For Middle-Earth - Trailer
• NARC - Trailer

In Ratchet & Clank: Up Your Arsenal, Ratchet and Clank once again team up for an all-new adventure combining diverse gameplay with elements of action, exploration, adventure, puzzle-solving, strategy, role-playing and fierce gunfire into one riveting experience. Featuring single-player and introducing new multiplayer offline and online gameplay, Ratchet & Clank: Up Your Arsenal aims to push the action platform genre even further to deliver one of the most exciting and fulfilling single-player and multiplayer experiences ever.

Silent Storm: Sentinels is an expansion to the highly acclaimed turn-based tactical game Silent Storm, fully-rendered in breath-taking 3D with totally destructible environments, non-linear campaigns and RPG elements. The expansion takes you further into the story of the covert struggle against Thor's Hammer - a renegade organization set on global dominance.

Vampire: The Masquerade - Bloodlines allows players to become a dangerous creature of the night as they assume the role of a recently embraced fledgling vampire in the service of the city's dark prince. Vampire: The Masquerade- Bloodlines is being developed by Troika Games, whose founding members' credits include the award-winning Fallout, and is based on White Wolf's renowned pen-and-paper Vampire: The Masquerade RPG series. Built using Valve's Half-Life 2 Source Technology.

Namco's 'Ace Combat 5', shipping exclusively for the PlayStation2 in Fall 2004, is the newest installment is the most explosive title yet in the unparalleled 'Ace Combat' series. Developed by Namco Limited in Japan, 'Ace Combat 5' is set to soar as Namco’s fifth installment of the Air Combat/Ace Combat series. Read more for 30+ new screens ...

As a promotional stint for the upcoming blockbuster movie, Paramount has released a Sky Captain demo featuring 3 maps, fighting against Giant Robot, Flying Wings and Mechanical Crabs (under water). As you defeat the enemy, you will gain points, which you can then use to upgrade your plane in various ways. A fourth map will unlock in several weeks as part of an online contest to win a trip to London. Read more for details, screens and download links (registration on website required) ...

Funcom is proud to announce that Anarchy Online is turning three years on June 27th! Through the years, Anarchy Online has evolved to become the highest ranking sci-fi MMORPG on the market, a feat made possible thanks to the commitment and feedback from our players. Today, Anarchy Online is a highly profitable and thriving online game, and Rubi-Ka has turned into an incredible planet, almost breathing and taking on a life of its own.