via IGN


THQ Inc. (NASDAQ:THQI) today announced that Journey to the Center of the Earth is currently in development for Nintendo DS. Based on Journey to the Center of the Earth 3-D, the highly anticipated 3-D film from New Line Cinema starring Brendan Fraser, the video game is scheduled for simultaneous release with the film this summer. The film, which is the first ever digital 3-D live action release, will open in theatres nationwide on July 11.

In Journey to the Center of the Earth, players can relive the excitement from the film as they ride a dangerous rock slide, navigate an out-of-control mine cart, raft across an ancient sea and survive from being chased by a Gigantosaurus. Utilizing the unique controls of Nintendo DS to play as all three main characters from the movie, Trevor, Sean and Hannah, gameplay will take place throughout seven worlds from the film.

Plus, THQ has expanded upon these worlds even more, allowing players to explore the "Center of the Earth" beyond what audiences can see in the film. Players will also enjoy mini-games where they will dig for dinosaur bones and decipher ancient ruins.

An exciting adventure based on the classic Jules Verne novel "Journey to the Center of the Earth," Journey to the Center of the Earth 3-D stars Brendan Fraser (Crash, The Mummy) as a science professor whose untraditional hypotheses have made him the laughing stock of the academic community. But on an expedition in Iceland, he and his nephew stumble upon a major discovery that launches them on a thrilling journey deep beneath the Earth's surface, where they travel through never-before-seen worlds and encounter a variety of unusual creatures. Journey 3-D is directed by Academy Award-winning visual effects veteran Eric Brevig (Total Recall, Pearl Harbor). The film is a co-venture between New Line Cinema and Walden Media. ...

Microsoft has admitted that it's staffing up for its Halo collaboration with Lord of the Rings director Peter Jackson.

Internet detectives over at MTV unearthed job postings recently on Microsoft's website that mentioned working with "an external luminary" in relation to "a new experience in the Halo universe".

It turns out that even Microsoft couldn't brush that one off as rumour and speculation, so the company clarified matters thus:

"Since [the original X06 announcement], Microsoft Game Studios has been hard at work collaborating with Peter Jackson and Bungie on the development of that project.

"At this time, it's necessary to grow the internal team to keep pace with development. Bungie will continue to remain involved in multiple aspects of the Halo Universe with MGS."

There's still no real word on what the Jackson Halo game is, apart from mutterings in early 2007 about episodic content. ...

via Computer and Video Games


Ninja Gaiden II has been officially dated for June 6 in Europe.

The date has been rumoured for a couple of weeks, but this official confirmation means we'll definitely be cutting hooded blokes' arms off in time for this summer's lads holiday.

There's also word of a demo on the horizon, which will supposedly be hitting the Xbox Live servers next month. We'll keep you posted on that one. ...

via IGN


World War II has had its fair share of videogame representations, but it's pretty safe to say that none have been as insane as Operation Darkness. The game finds Hitler in charge of an unholy and inhuman army and makes use of turn-based strategy RPG mechanics. It all makes sense if you're completely mental.

Operation Darkness is being brought to the US by Atlus soon, but if you can't wait you can download the newly released demo off of Xbox Live to give it a spin. Well, you can if you live in the US or Canada as those are currently the only locations where the demo has been made available. ...

via Eurogamer


American gamers will be able to download a playable demo of echochrome from the PlayStation Store on PS3 and the PSP's web-based version today.

However, we've been told by Sony friends that the demo won't be part of today's PAL Store update, so you'll have to dust off your US logins to access it.

According to a post on the official PlayStation Blog, the demo offers the brief tutorial (and presumably a few of the early levels), not unlike the Japanese demo that you can already download.

The full game will have 56 levels on PS3 and 56 different ones on PSP, as well as a level creator tool on both systems, with the best PS3 efforts likely to be offered as downloadable content.

Speaking of which, "Additional content will be available from Day 1," according to blogger Kumi Yuasa, associate producer on the game, and this will consist of user-created levels from Japan and elsewhere in Asia.

That's only for the PS3 though - PSP owners will share stuff using ad hoc wireless.

Check out the PlayStation Blog post for more, or check our echochrome gamepage for hands-on reports and exclusive gameplay videos. ...

via Computer and Video Games


Overlord didn't shake the very foundations of gaming critics on PC and Xbox 360, but that's not put Codemasters off from bringing the game to PS3 - and it's an extended version heading to Sony's console at that.

You can see how it's shaping up in the new screenshots and video that's uploaded.

Overlord is kind of like Pikmin meets Fable, with you the player assuming the role of Overlord and attempting to conquer a fantasy world. Helping the Overlord out are minions under your control that you can use to do the likes of attack enemies, push obstructions out the way and even boost your health by sacrificing the little blighters on an altar.

The PS3 version carries the subtitle Raising Hell, which was the name of one of the content packs released for Overlord original, so no prizes for guessing this content is included out the box for the game on Sony's console. On top of that it has "never-before-seen exclusive features", according to Codemasters, and online co-op and split-screen head-to-head play.


Screenshots
Trailer ...

via Eurogamer


Nintendo's WiiWare service will launch in Europe on 20th May and games will cost 500 Wii Points and upwards, according to a release issued today.

Nintendo has yet to announce a European launch line-up for the service, which will offer first- and third-party downloadable games, but we can assume it will be drawn from the games shown off in the US recently.

WiiWare has already launched in Japan on 25th March and will go live in the US on 12th May. Games include LostWinds from UK developer Frontier, Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: My Life as a King by Square Enix, and Strong Bad's Cool Games for Attractive People by Telltale, based on the Homestar Runner cartoons.

Then, 30th May will see the European launch of a new "Nintendo Channel", which will be used for "keeping everyone up-to-date on all the latest information for past, present and future games on all Nintendo platforms". Er, back off? ...

via Eurogamer


Super Smash Bros. Brawl will be released on 27th June in Europe, Nintendo said today.

Having puffed out its chest about Wii hardware and software sales and announced European WiiWare details this morning, Nintendo has also issued a bunch of release dates and SSBB was among them.

At a glance, there's nothing massively new and fascinating elsewhere on the list (and indeed some of it is slightly less detailed information than what we already have - we know Boom Blox is out on 9th May, for instance, whereas this list just says May), but there are a few unknown quantities tucked away in its depths.

Family Ski, for instance, is down as 13th June, and Cooking Guide: Can't Decide What to Eat? from Nintendo claims to be out in June as well.


Nintendo Wii dates:

• Alone In The Dark (ATARI) Q1 2008
• Godzilla: Unleashed (ATARI) Q1 2008
• Worms: A Space Oddity (THQ) Q1 2008
• Yamaha Supercross (ZOO Digital Publishing Ltd) Q1 2008
• Wii Fit (with Wii Balance Board accessory) (Nintendo) 25th April
• Radio Helicopter (505 Games) 25th April
• Legend of Sayuki (505 Games) 9th May
• Top Spin 3 (2K Sports) May 2008
• Monster Truck Jam (Activision) May 2008
• Boom Blox (EA) May 2008
• Speed Racer (Warner Bros Interactive Entertainment) May 2008
• DRAGON QUEST® SWORDS: The Masked Queen and the Tower of Mirrors® (SQUARE ENIX) End May 2008
• Hannah Montana - Music Jam (Disney Interactive Studios) Spring 2008
• Iron Man (SEGA) Spring 2008
• Ford Off Road Racing (Empire Interactive) 6th June
• Family Ski (Namco Bandai / Nintendo) 13th June
• Super Smash Bros. Brawl (Nintendo) 27th June
• Lego: Indiana Jones the Original Adventures (LucasArts / Activision) June 2008
• Monster Lab (Eidos) June 2008
• Wacky Races (Eidos) June 2008
• Mummy Tomb of the Emperor (Vivendi Games) July 2008
• Blast Works - Build, Trade, Destroy (Majesco / Eidos) Q2 2008
• de Blob (THQ) Q2 2008
• Sports Island (Hudson Soft / Konami) Q2 2008
• Chess Crusade (ZOO Digital Publishing Ltd) Q2 2008
• Garfield Gets Real (ZOO Digital Publishing Ltd) Q2 2008
• Garfield’s Fun Fest (ZOO digital Publishing Ltd) Q2 2008
• Jeep Let’s Off Road (ZOO Digital Publishing Ltd) Q2 2008
• Margots Word Brain (ZOO Digital Publishing Ltd) Q2 2008
• Star Wars: The Force Unleashed (LucasArts / Activision) Summer 2008
• We Love Golf (Capcom) Summer 2008
• The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian (Disney Interactive Studios) Summer 2008
• Pipemania (Empire Interactive) 14th September
• Brave: A Warrior’s Tale (SouthPeak Games) Q3 2008
• Crash (tentative title) (Vivendi Games) October 2008
• Spyro (tentative title) (Vivendi Games) October 2008
• Bratz Kids (The Game Factory) Q4 2008
• Build-A-Bear Workshop (The Game Factory) Q4 2008
• RUBIKS (The Game Factory) Q4 2008

For DS list, see source link or veiw here ...

via Eurogamer


Super Smash Bros. Brawl will be released on 27th June in Europe, Nintendo said today.

Having puffed out its chest about Wii hardware and software sales and announced European WiiWare details this morning, Nintendo has also issued a bunch of release dates and SSBB was among them.

At a glance, there's nothing massively new and fascinating elsewhere on the list (and indeed some of it is slightly less detailed information than what we already have - we know Boom Blox is out on 9th May, for instance, whereas this list just says May), but there are a few unknown quantities tucked away in its depths.

Family Ski, for instance, is down as 13th June, and Cooking Guide: Can't Decide What to Eat? from Nintendo claims to be out in June as well.


Nintendo DS dates:

• Godzilla: Unleashed (ATARI) Q1 2008
• Fish Tycoon (Majesco / Eidos) Q1 2008
• Holly Hobbie (Majesco / Eidos) Q1 2008
• Nancy Drew (Majesco / Eidos) Q1 2008
• Crayola: Treasure Adventures (Ignition) Q1 2008
• GEORGE OF THE JUNGLE (Ignition) Q1 2008
• Teenage Zombies (Ignition) Q1 2008
• Mystery Mansion (505 Games) 4th April
• Draglade (505 Games) 11th April
• Mystery Detective II (505 Games) 18th April
• Starz (505 Games) 18th April
• King of Clubs (Oxygen Games) 18th April
• Dream Pinball 3D (SouthPeak Games) 18th April
• The World Ends With You (SQUARE ENIX) 18th April
• Ace Attorney: Apollo Justice (Capcom / Nintendo) 9th May
• Subbuteo (505 Games) 30th May
• Monster Truck Jam (Activision) May 2008
• Race Driver GRID (Codemasters) May 2008
• The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian (Disney Interactive Studios) May 2008
• City Life (Monte Cristo Multimedia) May 2008
• ArchimDS (Rising Star Games) May 2008
• Ecolis (Rising Star Games) May 2008
• Speed Racer (Warner Bros Interactive Entertainment) May 2008
• Hannah Montana - Music Jam (Disney Interactive Studios) Spring 2008
• Iron Man (SEGA) Spring 2008
• Etrian Odyssey (Atlus / Nintendo) 6th June
• Code Lyoko 2 (The Game Factory) 9th June
• Bratz Ponyz 2 (The Game Factory) 11th June
• Pipemania (Empire Interactive) 20th June
• Cooking Guide: Can’t Decide What to Eat? (Nintendo) June 2008
• Lego: Indiana Jones the Original Adventures (LucasArts / Activision) June 2008
• Looney Tunes (Eidos) June 2008
• Monster Lab (Eidos) June 2008
• Wacky Races (Eidos) June 2008
• Zoo Hospital (Majesco / Eidos) Q2 2008
• Hello Kitty: Big City Dreams (Empire Interactive) Q2 2008
• New International Track & Field (Konami) Q2 2008
• Nanostray 2 (Majesco) Q2 2008
• Chess Crusade (ZOO Digital Publishing Ltd) Q2 2008
• Margots Word Brain (ZOO Digital Publishing Ltd) Q2 2008
• Shining Star (ZOO Digital Publishing Ltd) Q2 2008
• Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Time (Nintendo) 4th July
• Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Darkness (Nintendo) 4th July
• Mummy Tomb of the Emperor (Vivendi Games) July 2008
• Star Wars: The Force Unleashed (LucasArts / Activision) Summer 2008
• Bratz Kidz (The Game Factory) Q3 2008
• RUBIKS Classic (tentative title) (The Game Factory) Q3 2008
• Brave: Shaman’s Challenge (SouthPeak Games) Q3 2008
• Ninjatown (SouthPeak Games) October 2008
• Crash (tentative title) (Vivendi Games) October 2008
• Ghostbusters (Vivendi Games) October 2008
• Spyro (tentative title) (Vivendi Games) October 2008
• ELEMENTS (The Game Factory) Q4 2008

For Wii list, see source link or view here ...