This game is from the makers of Pacific Storm.

Having sampled the game first-hand, it�s clear Unreal 3 is shaping up to be something special. While the franchise�s absence from our machines may have been a protracted one, the series is looking like it�s going to be returning to PlayStation better, slicker and more frantic than ever. With its stunning arsenal of weapons, countless vehicles, incredible multiplayer action and compelling single-player campaign, Unreal Tournament 3 has the potential to be one of the most complete FPS packages ever. And not too far off from now, you�ll be able play it for yourselves.

"I don't think there's a lot of money in making engines for the Wii."

"What we're doing is the really high-end, next-generation visuals," he said. "We're pushing these machines real hard. I just think that we have too many things on our plate to go back and put resources into that kind of thing."

1. Halo 3
2. Gears of War
3. Madden NFL 08
4. Jericho Demo
5. Guitar Hero II
6. Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six Vegas
7. Forza Motorsport 2
8. skate.
9. Call Of Duty 3
10. BioShock

Neverwinter Nights 2: Mask of the Betrayer Peek #2
Ashenwood, a snow-covered forest that's home to many spirits, is a place we'll visit in Obsidian's upcoming title - Includes four exclusive screenshots

Hellgate: London Media #2
Glistening Blade Minions are among the demonic foes we'll face when Flagship's action RPG ships later this month - An exclusive 1680x1050 screenshot

While the 4.2 million units equate to major profit for Microsoft, that same audience would amount to major failure for Fox and Universal. If each of the roughly 11 million Xbox 360 owners buys two tickets to the film, it is still a bust. Of course a film would be made to appeal to a larger audience, but despite best intentions, that rarely happens. Absent a significant leap of faith, or hubris, Halo may never be a film. For Halo fans, that could be a good thing. It could even be a good thing for Microsoft. Games are a stand-alone medium. Financially, compared to film, they are a much better one.

Part of it is taking place in Iraq. How much are you doing with that element?

Quite a lot, actually. When I first wrote the one-page BlackSite story, it ignored things like, "Sure we want to steal some of the breakables from Stranglehold. We've got vehicles, [and so on]." We eventually did squad command and this interesting squad morale feature, and I think those are cool. But always in the background, I was like, "Look, I'm really fucking angry right now. Everything I read pisses me off." You can do this two ways: you can be super heavy-handed and propagandize -- and I wasn't interested in that -- or you can try to organically weave something through the entire work. If you do that, you run the risk of minimizing it so much that nobody notices it.

I think that we've actually done a pretty good job of not pushing it down your throat, and yet not letting it vanish either. It's very much there. The game starts in Iraq. You're Aaron Pierce, this Delta Force assassin, essentially. Something happens to one of your squadmates in Iraq. You're looking for weapons of mass destruction that aren't there, of course, and then you move into small-town America. At that point, you're U.S. special forces operating on American soil. It's subtle stuff, but moving into the first mission where you're about to be briefed, you're going past people and cars and checkpoints that have been quarantined. They're going, "Hey, you guys can't do this," and somebody else is saying, "The hell we can't."

Then it just gets more and more subversive from there as Pierce figures out that the primary enemy in the game, which is being called an insurgency operating on U.S. soil, is really wounded American soldiers from Iraq who are being disappeared by the government, taken underground, and experimented on with regard to this "Army of One"-type program. So we go into the Walter Reed allusions, and the Abu Ghraib allusions, and we try to do it in such a way that won't make people vomit or whatever, but at the same time, it's definitely there. The whole theme is, "Who is the enemy? Look at the enemy -- do I look like the enemy to you?" One year, somebody's a freedom fighter, the next year they're a terrorist.

The massive carriers serve as operations centers for leaders of the protoss fleets. Heavily armored and shielded, carriers can punch their way through enemy blockades by unleashing flights of robotic interceptors at vital enemy targets. These maneuverable, computer-guided craft tear through enemy flight formations and relentlessly strafe slower ground targets with potent plasma charges.

Interceptors are automatically manufactured and serviced inside the carriers� bays, and a number of prepped interceptors can be launched in rapid succession. In battle, carriers appear to be virtual hornets� nests of activity as their agile offspring dart out to launch their attacks and retreat just as rapidly to repair any damage they sustain. Terran scientists have long yearned for an opportunity to study just how the smoothly orchestrated operations of a carrier are achieved in detail.

Most carriers have no weapon batteries of any kind, but their deployment of interceptor flights makes them devastating in a ship-to-ship battle. However, a handful of heavily armed "super carriers" exist, most famously the Gantrithor. This was the flagship of Executor Tassadar when he led a protoss expeditionary force in its attempts to eradicate the zerg in terran space. The Gantrithor was powerful enough that it single-handedly defeated an entire terran battlecruiser squadron under the command of General Edmund Duke. Tassadar later sacrificed himself and his ship to destroy the zerg Overmind when it manifested on Aiur.

How hard is it to adhere to Lore when you're making an MMORPG? Where does the team draw the line between staying true to the lore and making a balanced, fun game with mechanics that work?

A computer game is a change of medium, the same way as films are, inevitably different from the novels they are based on. Players should be prepared to enjoy Robert E. Howard's Conan universe in a new way, through an MMORPG experience. It will inevitably be a different experience from the books, but will still reflect the same Conan spirit and adventure (and plenty of blood).

Peter Jackson�s Lord of the Rings trilogy, Chris Nolan's Batman Begins and the recent Casino Royale film are all good examples of film-makers retelling stories and reinventing or re-examining characters to great effect. Mark Waid�s Kingdom Come and Mark Millar�s Ultimates graphic novels are also excellent examples of presenting favorite characters from fresh view-points.

Lore is an invaluable framework. Staying true to it and producing a fun game need not be mutually exclusive. And nothing we do in the MMO will violate the original stories, they�ll still be right there on the shelf.

Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ: ERTS) today announced the acquisition of Atlanta-based Super Computer International (SCI), a leading provider of gaming client applications and software tools for the PC.

EA will purchase SCI�s technology assets and the SCI development team will join EA�s Online Technology Group. Jesper Jensen, SCI CEO, will continue to lead the team, reporting to Nanea Reeves, EA Vice President and COO for Online.

�SCI�s development expertise is uniquely suited to our online technology needs,� said Nanea Reeves. �The team�s technical leadership and creative approach is a great fit, and we�re thrilled to have them join EA.�

SCI is the creator of PlayLinc, a next generation online game browsing and messaging platform that includes rich social networking tools like IM and VoIP, buddy tracking, player invitations, team management and more.

In Paradise City, the player takes on the role of a young, ambitious gangster with the single goal of becoming the most successful and influential criminal in the entire city. Move through the city, robbing, intimidating and killing all that stand in your way, gaining notoriety and cool cash. As the player becomes more and more notorious, his influence grows and other criminals flock to him and become the core of this gang, his own criminal organization.

Wanna know if the girls are pretty in Paradise City before starting the demo download? Then read IGN's recent preview, or hit up the game's official site.

REDMOND, Wash. � Oct. 5, 2007 � Microsoft Corp. today announced a plan for Bungie Studios, the developers of the �Halo� franchise, to embark on a path to become an independent company. Microsoft will retain an equity interest in Bungie, at the same time continuing its long-standing publishing agreement between Microsoft Game Studios and Bungie for the Microsoft-owned �Halo� intellectual property as well as other future properties developed by Bungie.

The press release can be read here.

The updated, grand total of people I know at Mythic is now less than, or equal to zero.

PC

• The Settlers: Rise of an Empire - GameSpot - 7/10

  360
  

• Conan - IGN UK - 7.5/10
• Halo 3 - Gamepyre - 96%

  PS3
  

• Go! Sports Ski - PS3.IGN - 2.1/10
• NHL 08 - SI - 8.2/10

P.S. - Are you a member of the mole people? Does the color white affect you like sun does a Vampire? Then you may be pleased that Crazy Vincent made a bunch of skins for the site that include: tinted, slate and classic colors with normal or enlarged font sizes. It's pretty easy to install. Firefox users need the stylish extension, and IE/Opera users need to add a new style sheet to their browser. Please note, we do not support/endorse/etc the skins and use them at your own risk, etc, etc, etc ... Anyways, thanks Jason. :)

Today's TGIF question:

What games are on your most played list last week?

You can see mine in the related games links below.