BioWare and Lucasarts have released new screenshots and concept art of their upcoming MMO Star Wars: The Old Republic, showing the environment of Ord Mantell.

Ord Mantell is a hazardous planet of mountainous plains and volcanic islands currently playing host to a brutal civil war between the Republic military and Separatist guerillas backed by shady crime syndicates--a situation sure to be rife with quest opportunities.

We would love to bring word of a release date but, alas, all we have are pretty pictures.

Thanks to Shacker lotus2133 for the tip.

Rise of Nations developer Big Huge Games has canceled its two known projects, Kotaku reports, alongside rumors that several companies have expressed interest in buying the otherwise doomed studio from THQ, including Curt Schilling's 38 Studios.

One of the two games was a PC, PS3 and Xbox 360 action-RPG, Ascendant, being led by Oblivion designer Ken Rolston. The other was the "quirky" Wii project, God: The Game. A trailer and screenshots for Ascendant, along with numerous ... Read more

Hello Shacknews! Are you ready to rock? This... is Brutal Legend.

New screenshots of Tim Schafer and Double Fine Productions' action heavy metal fantasy show all we could hope for--hot rods, roadies, demons, axes, and Flying V axes.

If the screenshots don't have you throwing devil horns, this rocking artwork... Read more

Twisted Pixel Games, developers of The Maw, are today very proud to announce 'Splosion Man, a 2.5D action platformer with a terrifying eponymous hero.

We were pretty disappointed to receive the announcement for 'Splosion Man yesterday as we figured it was probably just another too-rad-to-be-true April Fools' joke. Nope.

Due on Xbox 360 as a Live Arcade download, the game offers the ability to 'splode yourself at will. "Any scientist he catches is 'sploded into chunks of ham and ribeyes, the smell of their destruction terrifying, but also a little succulent," wrote Twisted Pixel.

Packing support for up to four co-op players, either online or off, and online leaderboards, 'Splosion Man is due to arrive "shortly before the world is incinerated."

Pandemic has launched a new website for its open-world World War II game The Saboteur, delivering screenshots and concept art from the long-in-development title. Set in Nazi-occupied Paris, the stealth-action game puts players on a quest to avenge their murdered family. The Paris of the 1940s is a place "where the women are sexy, the missions are epic, and the revenge is satisfying," writes Pandemic.

Though the site doesn't specify platforms, The Saboteur was in development for Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 at last official word. It's set to arrive no later than March 31, 2010.

Halo series developer Bungie has revealed a screenshot of the third map that will be included in the Halo 3 Mythic Map Pack, with Microsoft filling in some details.

Described as "unlike any Bungie has ever created," Sandbox features a "tiered, open-world layout" that "combines large-scale vehicular combat with a limitless amount of Forge customization." It joins the previously revealed Assembly and Orbital maps.

The Halo 3 Mythic Map Pack will be included in the Halo Wars Limited Edition, slated to hit North America on March 3, and will likely hit as a paid Xbox 360 download later on.

In addition, two pieces of art from Bungie's standalone Halo 3 prequel Halo 3: ODST were provided, both of which were previously featured in Game Informer. Due this fall, the standalone Xbox 360 game is said to pack 3-5 hours of gameplay for under $60.

With Telltale having completed Sam & Max Season 2 earlier this year, and just wrapped up the first season of Strong Bad's Cool Game for Attractive People, the studio is now focusing media attention on its upcoming episodic Wallace & Gromit adventure games.

To accomplish this task, Telltale today released the "first in-game screenshots" from Wallace & Gromit's Grand Adventures, and also provided some concept art.

The company has yet to say what platforms the famed Aardman Animation-created inventor-canine duo will hit, or exactly when the games will arrive next year.

The next game from Keita Takahasi, the creator of the beloved roll 'em up series Katarmari Damacy, will arrive early next year as a downloadable PlayStation 3 game.

Titled Noby Noby Boy, the effort sees players take control of a worm-like creature that grows by eating objects scatted around the game world. An online multiplayer mode will be included, as well as the ability to record game footage and upload it to YouTube.

No price point was mentioned in Namco's unique visual press release, but the game is expected to sell for $10 in North America, based on its pricing in Europe and Japan.

Independent developer Petroglyph, best known for RTS titles Universe at War and Star Wars: Empire at War, and publisher True Games Interactive today unveiled Mytheon, the free-to-play PC strategy game the duo initially announced back in April.

In lieu of a one-time purchase or a subscription fee, the customization-heavy title will be supported by micro-transactions. The extent of these transactions was not specified.

Set to arrive in fall 2009, Mytheon is said to combine the "best elements of action, strategy and RPG game-play with a heavy emphasis on collectability and combat." Three character classes will be available, with each class focusing on a different type of "Power Stone" to collect and glean unique spells from.

"There really isn't a game on the market today that someone could compare to Mytheon," boasted True Games founder Jeff Lujan. "The game truly creates an entirely new genre offering a combination of features that gamers would normally have to play several different games to get."

Nippon Ichi's side-scrolling PSP action game Prinny: Can I Really Be the Hero? will arrive in North America on February 17, subsidiary NIS America revealed today.

Featuring the disposable Prinny characters from the Nippon Ichi strategy-RPG series Disgaea, the explosive dood-exclaiming penguin-things take center stage as they fight through the Netherworld in the developer's first action title.

One hit equals death in the game, which is described as "the toughest action sidescroller," though players are given a total of 1000 lives to beat it.

In addition to the above screenshots, some artwork was released.

Shanghai-based game designer American McGee has tired of transoceanic flights and instead has taken to the internet to pitch his latest concept to the West: BaiJiu Racer, an Unreal Engine 3-powered "MMO-lite racing game concept with China as the core theme."

"It's the first Chinese cart racing game developed with an authentic and original Chinese art style, set in real-world locations, and featuring some of the funkiest racing vehicle designs the world has ever seen," wrote McGee on his own blog. It also promises "strong narrative backbone and emotional drama" as part of the MMO-esque experience.

"We've crafted a solid Game Design Document, Technical Design Document, Art Bible, Visual Target Demo, and Development Plan," explained McGee, which in essence means the game is completely designed--on paper. The racer has a publisher in China but McGee is going public to find a publisher for the rest of the world.

McGee released a set of concept art and a trailer showing the game's art style and gameplay in an early state. Also revealed by the concept art is a plastic surgery feature in which characters become more attractive over time.

It's unknown at this time whether the American McGee brand will be attached to BaiJiu Racer. For the trailer, look below... Read more

Ending years of silence and rumors, BioWare and LucasArts today revealed that they have joined forces to produce a Star Wars massively multiplayer online game set in the Knights of the Old Republic Universe.

Dubbed Star Wars: The Old Republic, the title will allow players to choose between the Galactic Republic and Sith Empire factions, with each having unique classes and races. Only a PC version was confirmed in today's announcement.

No release date was given, with BioWare stressing that the game has no release window, though a past report suggested it would launch in 2009. The studio is "definitely planning" an open beta, BioWare co-founder Greg Zeschuk confirmed.

The story-based MMO will be set roughly 300 years after BioWare's 2004 single-player RPG Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic (PC, Xbox) and the Obsidian-developed sequel, or 3500 years before the beloved film series.

"We're making KOTOR 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9 and beyond--this game is that big, it's got that much content in it," explained BioWare co-founder Ray Muzyka. "It's very... Read more

Over on its official website, developer Free Radical has released the first pieces of concept art from the next entry in its whimsical first-person shooter series TimeSplitters.

"It's funny, it's frantic and it'll do things you've never seen before! No, not naked girls, even better than that!," the studio teased. "This game will take the first person shooter to gaming nirvana. Save the world or die laughing, Timesplitters 4 is coming to getcha!"

Free Radical has yet to announce platforms or a release date for TimeSplitters 4, though the first word of it emerged in a PlayStation 3 magazine. Free Radical's last game, Haze, was originally slated to hit PC, PS3 and Xbox 360, but later became a PS3 exclusive.

While Blizzard has yet to tell gamers when they can expect Diablo 3 to be released, the studio has provided new screenshots and artwork from the PC action-RPG.

Along with the new media, Blizzard has unveiled the burrowing scavenger enemy. Its official description, pulled from the official site, follows:

As I began to fall, Burroughs grabbed me by the scruff of my collar and shook me violently. "You really want to feed some thresher, don't you, al-Hazir?" he asked. "What, haven't you seen scavengers before?"

I had indeed seen scavengers: small, burrowing creatures that feed upon carrion. Unlike most animals of this type, however, they are extremely aggressive and will not hesitate to attack those unfortunate enough to encounter them. Scavengers have powerful... Read more

D3Publisher today announced Eat Lead: The Return of Matt Hazard, a third-person action PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 game due early next year from Dead Head Fred (PSP) developer and D3 subsidiary Vicious Cycle.

Though Eat Lead is the first entry in the franchise, D3 has been branding Matt Hazard as a "classic 80's videogame action hero," detailing the protagonist's fictional appearances in titles such as "A Fistful of Hazard" and "Matt Hazard 3D."

D3 claims that Eat Lead "pays homage to the games of yesteryear" through zombie, space marine, cowboy, genetically mutated super sniper foes, and "fires... Read more

As we near the tail end of Nintendo's onslaught of announcements and media, we present new screenshots and artwork from the eclectic music game Rhythm Heaven.

Created by Nintendo's WarioWare team, the DS title challenges players to keep their rhythm across numerous song-based mini-games, occasionally mixing all of the various stages into a delightful and surprisingly catchy tune.

The sequel to the Japan-only GBA title Rhythm Tengoku, and already available in Japan as Rhythm Tengoku Gold, Rhythm Heaven hits North America in the first half of 2009.

Developer High Voltage Software has provided some art, a new trailer and screenshots of its technologically-advanced Wii shooter The Conduit, which arrives next year.

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Dynasty Warriors: Gundam 2 will come to North America next year for Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 and PlayStation 2, publisher Namco Bandai announced today.

The Omega Force-developed sequel will send players back into space in the Gundam universe's robotic "mobile suits" for more Dynasty Warriors-derived battlefield hack-and-slash gameplay. The new game will feature new suits, new weapons, new moves, and online multiplayer.

Gundam 2's first screenshots accompanied today's announcement as well as some concept art.

In commemoration of this week's Penny Arcade Expo, developer Hothead Games has released the first batch of screenshots and a piece of artwork from Penny Arcade Adventures: On the Rain-Slick Precipice of Darkness, Episode 2.

The downloadable RPG is slated to hit PC, PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 this winter.

Screenshots and concept art of Evolution Studios' MotorStorm: Pacific Rift (PS3), due out this fall, are the latest in the barrage of media from the Leipzig Games Convention.