Get your inner rock star active! RedOctane has announced Guitar Hero II for release this Fall. The sequel will feature a new track list, new venues and additional play modes, including the ability to transform the original Guitar Hero controller into a rhythm, lead or bass guitar.

No details on the track list are available, but it was let out that the list will feature a mix of classic rock, ‘hair’ metal, heavy metal, modern rock and alternative songs. More than 55 songs will be featured in the title.

An early glimpse of the game will be shown at E3 in a couple of weeks. Guitar Hero II is scheduled for release this November.

If Pac-Man is your thing, then be sure to head on over to the PAC-MAN tournaments at E3 this year! Namco Networks will be hosting daily tournaments consisting of two rounds - a qualifying round and a final challenge - giving players the chance to go up against other similarly crazy Pac-Man fans for prizes and “bragging rights.”

During the daily qualifying rounds, contestants will compete on mobile phones to see who can earn the highest PAC-MAN score. There will be three qualifying rounds daily, which are open to all who want to enter. The day’s six highest scores (as displayed on the tournament’s leader board) will qualify contestants for the daily final challenge.

Taking it back to the arcade-era, final challenge contestants will face a “sudden death” playoff on a classic PAC-MAN arcade machine. With just one life, challengers must score as many points as possible.

All of the final challenge contestants will receive prizes delivered by PAC-MAN himself. Along with a “PAC-MAN Champion” t-shirt, the daily winner will receive a gift basket of PAC-MAN toys, shirts, and other products available exclusively from ClubNamco.com, Namco Networks’ new retail site.

The tournaments will be run at Namco Networks’ booth (#600 in the South Hall). Qualifying rounds will begin at 11 am, 12 pm and 2 pm; the daily final challenge will be at 3 pm.

French developer Ankama Studio announced its E3 2006 lineup. Here it is:

WAKFU is the upcoming massively multiplayer video game of Ankama Studio. While Dofus keeps on gathering more and more players, Ankama Studio is already working on the development of a new Massive Multiplayer Online Game. In WAKFU, players will not only have to use the skills of their characters to fight a fierce fauna and flora using magic, martial arts or new technologies. They will also have to build cities in a virgin universe while preserving nature from destruction. Thanks to a universal and intuitive language, players will interact to create alliances or to take part in fights that will have a direct influence upon the universe.
Date of release: end of 2007

Ankama Studio is proud to announce the imminent release of Dofus-Arena. Dofus-Arena is currently under Beta test. It is based on the Dofus fighting system and is adapted to suit a 100%-PvP-tactical videogame. Each player must create a team made of characters armed with spells, weapons and items before they can face opponents in a 1vs1 or 2vs2 mode in the arenas which hide many surprises. The final goal: to become one of the greatest masters of Amakna. During the E3 2006, Ankama Studio will present the GOLD version before its official release.
Date of release: Summer 2006

DOFUS is a remarkable MMORPG. With a cartoon-like universe, a tactical turn-based gameplay during fights, a devastating humor and a free version with no time restriction, DOFUS became in less than a year a real phenomenon (800,000 registered players including 50,000 subscribers). Ankama Studio announces the release of the much expected extension “Riders of the Dragoturkey” for June 2006. In this extension, new things will appear such as mounts, breeding professions, new functionalities of communications and exchange in between players as well as the enlargement of the free zone.
Date of release: June 2006

The company will be showing off these games at booth #153C in the Concourse Hall.

The patches:

• Act of War: High Treason on Infogrames FTP, 3D Gamers, FileFront, VGPRO and Worthplaying
  
• Age of Empires III v1.06 on the Official Website
  
• Civilization IV v1.61 on 2K Games, 3D Gamers, FileFront, VGPRO and Worthplaying
  
• NASCAR Sim Racing Beta v1.029 on EA Sports

• Brigade E5: New Jagged Union on  3D Downloads, 3D Gamers, Computer Games, FileFront, Strategy Informer and Worthplaying
  
• CSI: 3 Dimensions of Murder on Telltale Games, 3D Gamers, FileNuts, Gameguru Mania, Gamer’s Hell, Strategy Informer and Worthplaying
  
• Daemonica on Meridian4
  
• Heroes of Might and Magic 5 on 3D Downloads, 3D Gamers, 4players.de, Boomtown, Computer Games, eXp,  FileFront, Gameswelt, FileShack, VGPRO and Worthplaying
  
• Refuse: Home, Sweep Home on the Official Website, 3D Downloads, 3D Gamers, FileFront and Worthplaying

NCSoft has announced plans for a Dungeon Runners closed beta, letting out word on how to sign up and play.

Sign up today for your chance at one of the limited Closed Beta slots. Dungeon Runners is NCsoft’s newest, downloadable MMO. Whether you have 15 minutes or hours to play, you should find a dungeon run to be an exciting and action packed experience. Come along for the ride and help us test and improve our dungeons.

You are welcome to pass this message along to your friends. Beta participants will be selected based on NCsoft’s needs at any particular time. NOTE: Due to legal restrictions, you must be 18 or older to participate in the Closed Beta.

Closed Beta is slated to begin May 1st.

The days of the dull downloadable RPG are officially over! Powered by NCsoft, Dungeon Runners is the most valuable and entertaining downloadable RPG yet. Dungeon Runners is a fast paced, action RPG experience where you take on the role of a brave hero and explore dangerous dungeons, battle ferocious monsters, and discover unique items! Your hero can adventure alone or team with a party to hunt terrible monsters and reap fantastic rewards.

Resident Evil creator Shinji Mikami is currently working on God Hand which Clover Studio announced a couple of days back. The game is apparently a beat-em-up with the main character fighting hand to hand with his transforming “god hand.”

Mikami, as stated above, is responsible for such classics as the original Resident Evil and the critically acclaimed Resident Evil 4, alongside various other titles. The game is due for release sometime next year. Clover is behind Okami, which will ship this September throughout North America.

Strategy First and Akella have announced that they have signed a co-operative deal for the development and publication of Disciples III: Renaissance, the next game in the famous RPG franchise.

“We’re glad to work in cooperation with Strategy First. We have gathered unique and talented developers and game-artists to work on the project. Akella and .dat intend to create the most exciting game in the series - keeping the basis of Disciples and Disciples II we will introduce new features in order to provide gamers with more interesting gameplay and realistic graphics”, says Dmitry Arkhipov, VP of development of Akella.

Development on the game has been going on since last Summer; the final game is expected later this year.

Four new high-resolution screenshots have been released for Quake Wars: Enemy Territory.

Bringing smiles to gamers’ faces, Ubisoft has officially announced that it will no longer be using the much controversial Starforce copy protection system in its games. This comes after news that the publisher dropped Starforce from Heroes of Might and Magic V.

Starforce has been under much fire lately. Many users have claimed that the software has caused problems to their computers, with Ubisoft getting slapped with a $5 million lawsuit by gamers who claimed that Starforce’s DRM has compromised the security of their machines. The anti-piracy company was also recently in the news as one of its employees posted a link to a site where one could illegally download Stardock’s Galactic Civilizations II, apparently trying to prove that without their software pirating a game is easy. The company was served another blow when Aspyr Media decided to abandon Starforce from Spellforce 2: Shadow Wars, as well as sever all ties with the company.

Hosting a spiffy color layout and a spiffier name, Orange Lounge Radio carries a list of games that Konami will release later this year.

As expected, DDR titles are present in the list - in fact, three of them. DDR Supernova is said to be scheduled for release on September 13 on the PS2; DDR Ultramix 4 for the Xbox on November 14; and the first next-gen title in the series - DDR Universe for the Xbox 360 on November 10. Karaoke Revolution: American Idol will also be hitting stores on November 15 for the PS2.

The list also reveals a new Castlevania sequel for the DS. Titled Castlevania: Portrait of Ruin, the game is due on November 15. On the portable side, a sequel to Death Jr. is listed for release on the PSP on October 18, with a DS version being released one week earlier. The Silent Hill remake that was previously announced was also mentioned: it will feature the original storyline with a few twists and will be dubbed Silent Hill: Original Sin.

Last, but not least, Bomberman Act Zero will be released on the PSP and Xbox 360 on July 12.

These titles are expected to be shown at E3 next month.

It’s open season on Ubisoft! The company has announced the videogame tie-in to the upcoming CG animated film for all available platforms, including the PC. Here’s the deal:

Open Season is a riotous romp in the great outdoors, where the rowdy brood of forest animals turns the tables on a bunch of unsuspecting hunters. When a domesticated grizzly named Boog gets lured into leaving the creature comforts of home by a fast-talking mule deer named Elliot, he finds himself lost in the woods just three days before hunting season. Forced to “rough it” in the great outdoors, Boog goes native, rallying all the forest animals to take back their home and send the hunters packing. The Open Season video game will allow player to relive the movie experience by playing as Boog and Elliot. Game features include: . Interaction with Beth, Shaw and all of the animal favorites from the Open Season film. . Throwing skunk bombs, hurling rabbits, using acorn-firing squirrels and pulling outrageous woodland pranks to scare the pants off the hunters. . Rolling in a giant snowball, riding the rapids on a floating outhouse, zipping through tunnels in a crazy mine cart ride and taking on more madcap adventures as Boog discovers how to go from mild to wild. . Ability to challenge friends or team up in hilarious four-player mini-games.

It is being developed by Ubi’s Montreal studio and will be shipped in mid-September, two weeks prior to the September 29 release of the movie.

These titles have been shipped since 11th April:

• Bone: The Great Cow Race
  
• Battlefield 2: Modern Combat (X360)
  
• Condemned: Criminal Origins (PC)
  
• King of Fighters NeoWave
  
• Major League Baseball 2K6 (X360)
  
• Monster Rancher Evo
  
• Tomb Raider: Legend (PC, PS2, X360)

• Hitman: Blood Money (May 26)
  
• Evolution GT (May 12)
  
• SCS - Dangerous Waters (April 28)
  
• Take Command 2nd Manassas
  
• World Poker Tour (PSP)

First, the patches:

• Call of Duty 2 v1.2 on 3D Downloads, 3D Gamers, Boomtown, Computer Games, FileFront, Gameguru Mania, GameSpot, VGPRO and Worthplaying
  
• Raging Tiger v1.16 on Shrapnel Games
  
• Scratches on the Official Website
  
• The Star and the Crescent v1.32 on Shrapnel Games
  
• Universal Combat: A World Apart v1.00.14 on 3000AD
  
• Warcraft III v1.20d on Blizzard
  
• X3: Reunion v1.4.02 on Egosoft

• City Life on GameSpot, 3D Downloads, 3D Gamers, Computer Games, FileFront, FilePlanet, FileShack, GameDaily, Gamer’s Hell, GameZone, PC Gameworld, VGPRO and Worthplaying
  
• Desperados 2: Cooper’s Revenge on 3D Gamers, Computer Games, Gameguru Mania and Worthplaying
  
• Bone: The Great Cow Race on Telltale Games Website, 3D Gamers, 3D Downloads, Computer Games and Worthplaying

Crave Entertainment has announced Dave Mirra BMX Challenge for the PSP. Widely known as one of the best, Dave Mirra for the PSP will feature 17 levels with 9 different environments and 9 bikes to choose from. The game will also feature multiplayer support for up to four players.

The game is expected to be released this October for $30.

If you’ve got a Xbox 360 and a broadband connection, just plug it in - the Free-for-All Xbox Live Week will run from April 8 through 15.

Sponsored by Adidas, the free week will be available to all members of Xbox Live, letting Silver users enjoy multiplayer games anytime throughout the week, as well as additional content in the form of videos, packs and more only for Gold members. Participants in the free week will also have the chance to win 11 limited edition Xbox 360 console’s (FIFA World Cup Edition) including a free subscription to Xbox Live. The consoles will come with an exclusively designed faceplate, a copy of the 2006 FIFA World Cup game and a voucher for the adidas Match Ball of the 2006 FIFA World Cup.