Week of August 5, 2007

The best news I've heard all year:

New York, NY – August 10, 2007 – 2K, a publishing label of Take-Two Interactive Software, Inc. (NASDAQ: TTWO), announced today that BioShock™ has gone to gold master exclusively for the Xbox 360™ video game and entertainment system and Games For Windows. Developed by 2K Boston and 2K Australia, the renowned 2K Games development studios, BioShock is a highly anticipated video game that will be available at stores in North America on August 21, 2007 and in Europe beginning August 24, 2007.

BioShock is a first-person shooter that lets players do things never before possible in the genre. Nearly everything in the game can be turned into a weapon; players can biologically modify their bodies with plasmids, hack devices and systems, upgrade weapons and craft new ammo variants, and experiment with different battle techniques.

Players enter the game as a castaway in Rapture, an underwater utopia torn apart by civil war. Caught between powerful forces and hunted down by genetically modified "splicers" and deadly security systems, players have to come to grips with a dangerous and mysterious world filled with powerful technology and fascinating characters. With multiple avenues for surmounting challenges on both a moral and tactical level, no encounter ever plays out the same and no two gamers will play BioShock the same way.

Features:

Biologically modify your body with plasmids, which are genetic augmentations that empower you with dozens of fantastic abilities including: sending Electrobolts storming from your fingertips, unleashing a swarm of hornets hatched from the veins of your arms, or strategically turning enemies against one another with irritants.

Take control of your world by hacking devices and systems: reprogram enemy security bots into personal bodyguards, modify vending machines to change prices, and transform machine gun security turrets into powerless pieces of metal.

Upgrade your weapons at Power-to-the-People stations located through Rapture: craft variants of ammo and plasmids by picking up materials in the city and modifying them at U-Invent kiosks.

Turn everything into a weapon: the environment, your body, fire and water, and even your worst enemies. BioShock’s free form combat options allow gameplay scenarios to be approached with a variety of weapons: inject active and passive plasmids, utilize environmental objects, exploit political alliances, or use a combination of techniques. Find your style but know when to adapt.

Explore an incredible and unique art deco world hidden deep under the ocean, vividly illustrated with realistic water effects and truly next generation graphics.

Make meaningful and mature decisions that culminate in the ultimate question: Do you exploit the innocent survivors of Rapture to save yourself…or risk it all to become their savior?

For more information, visit http://www.2kgames.com/bioshock.

Here's what you can find in the PlayStation Store today:

Focus Home Interactive and Cyanide Studio are equipping gamers for a fantastic adventure today with the release of a new single-player demo for Loki, their hack 'n slash RPG for PC.

In this 991 MB demo, players will jump into the blood-soaked boots of the Norse Warrior, one of the four characters available in the full game. The Norse Warrior is the toughest and most brutal character in the game, and prefers to deal death with two-handed weapons - including his trademark battle axe. As part of the demo campaign, players will have to collect elements needed to defeat Fenrir the legendary giant wolf and will also be able to level their character up to a max of 20 -- which means several hours of hack 'n slash fun for those who will want to explore the skill tree of the Scandinavian hero (200 is the maximum level you can reach in the game). In order to do this, players will face hundreds of enemies, wild beasts and other dangerous creatures that live in Myllkwoord forest, in the volcano and in the dungeons of the goblin city.

The demo is available at the following mirrors:

GameSpot

GamersHell

We have four new screenshots of NCsoft's MMORPG expansion Guild Wars: Eye of the North.

SANTA CLARA, Calif. - August 7, 2007 - NAMCO BANDAI Games America announced today that they have released the official demo for their award-winning and highly anticipated role-playing game, Eternal Sonata(TM), on Xbox LIVE(R) online entertainment network. The colorful, action-packed demo will be a fun introduction to the wonderful world of Eternal Sonata and is now available to download via Xbox LIVE Marketplace for both Silver and Gold members.

Developed by Japan-based Tri-Crescendo, Eternal Sonata follows the adventures of famed composer Frederic Chopin as he travels through a mysterious world where the lines between dreams and reality are blurred. Featuring an innovative hybrid real-time and turn-based combat system, lush environments, and an epic storyline of redemption and self-discovery, Eternal Sonata sets itself apart from all other role-playing game experiences on the Xbox 360(TM) video game and entertainment system from Microsoft.

Eternal Sonata made a name for itself at the recent E3 Business & Media Summit as it was nominated by the E3 Game Critics Awards for Best Role-Playing Game. Top gaming sites also recognized it with top honors; IGN.com awarded it Best Artistic Design accolades on the Xbox 360 and GameTrailers.com gave it a Best Role-Playing Game nod.

"Eternal Sonata is a game that immerses players in a world as rich and vibrant as the music of Chopin," said Makoto Iwai, Executive Vice President and COO, NAMCO BANDAI Games America Inc. "The release of the demo marks the chance for gamers to finally experience this incredibly detailed and nuanced world, and we're confident that they'll be spellbound from the start."

Eternal Sonata is set to release for the Xbox 360 video game and entertainment system from Microsoft on Monday, September 17th, 2007.

SAN FRANCISCO (August 7, 2007) – SEGA® of America, Inc. today announced that Crazy Taxi™: Fare Wars has shipped to stores nationwide exclusively for the PSP® (PlayStation®Portable) system. For the first time ever, players can compete against a friend in a high-speed, money making multiplayer frenzy. Cabbies can also perfect their skills through 32 mini-games and effortlessly customize their music while racing through the city. With all-new features, gamers can now relive the addictive, action-packed gameplay of the original Dreamcast games, Crazy Taxi™ and Crazy Taxi™ 2.

Codemasters released six new screenshots of Fury, Auran's massive multiplayer action-RPG.

REDMOND, Wash. — Aug. 6, 2007 — Microsoft Corp. today kicked off the greatest holiday lineup in video game history by announcing it will reduce the estimated retail price (ERP) of Xbox 360™ by $50 (U.S.) beginning Aug. 8. Soon to follow, Electronic Arts Inc. (EA) will release its blockbuster video game title “Madden NFL 08” on Aug. 14. “Madden NFL Football,” one of the most important mass-appeal franchises in video games, was the top-selling game of 2006 and is the top-selling franchise of the past 10 years. Only Xbox 360 offers a console for all interests and budgets.

FOSTER CITY, Calif., August 6, 2007 – Sony Computer Entertainment America Inc. (SCEA) today announced the availability of a new 80GB PLAYSTATION®3 (PS3™) at online and brick-and-mortar retailers in the United States and Canada. The system, available immediately for a suggested retailer price of $599US/$659 CND, comes with the hit online-enabled off-road racing game MotorStorm™ packed in the box.

It's been announced on the official PlayStation Blog that Warhawk has gone gold and will be available in stores and on the PSN August 28th.

We've posted some new images of a couple of online games:

Quake Wars: Enemy Territory

Tabula Rasa

The three latest games to be found on the Wii Shop Channel:

Wave Race® 64 (Nintendo® 64, 1-2 players, rated E for Everyone, 1,000 Wii Points)

ADVENTURES OF LOLO (NES®, 1 player, rated E for Everyone, 500 Wii Points)

GALAGAâ™ (TurboGrafx16, 1 player, rated E for Everyone, 600 Wii Points)

Chertsey, UK. – August 6, 2007 – Get ready to hack, slash, and shoot your way through a demon-infested London this Halloween! Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ: ERTS) and NAMCO BANDAI Games America Inc. today announced that Hellgate™: London, the premier title from Flagship Studios, will start hitting retail stores in North America on October 31, 2007 and in Europe on November 2, 2007 for the PC. Hellgate: London represents the next leap in the evolution of the action RPG genre, combining the depth and addictive gameplay of traditional RPGs with the visceral action of first-person shooters.

Buka Sends word that they've relaunched their website, giving it a better look and feel with easier navigation.