Confirming this Hollywood Reporter story, Codemasters has officially announced Clive Barker’s Jericho, a new horror game from the master of horror in development at Mercury Steam. Critically lauded for his effort in 2001’s Undying, Barker partnered with Majesco and Terminal Reality to work on Demonik, which also had a movie in the making. However, that game got cancelled due to Majesco pulling out of the high-end games market, instead focusing more on casual games and portable titles.

This deal with Codemasters will see Barker realize his concept to a full-fledged game which is being developed for next-generation consoles and PC for release in late 2007.

“This project is very close to my heart and I don’t believe there’s ever been anything like it. It promises to be the most spectacular, creative, and unflinching realization of a Clive Barker nightmare that will drag players in kicking and screaming,” said Barker.

Clive Barker’s Jericho deals with the mysterious reappearance of a lost city in a remote desert. When a form of evil that goes right back to the dawn of days resurfaces from there, a Special Forces squad, trained in both conventional warfare and the arcane arts, is sent in. Their mission: Hunt down and destroy the evil that lurks at the heart of the city before it destroys humanity.

“Players will constantly be given new challenges, new environments, and yes, new horrors and abominations to face every step of the way,” continues Barker. “However, unlike a conventional game in which the characters are attempting to escape at the end of their ride through Hell, our protagonists have a much more difficult task. The closer they come to the end of their trek into darkness, the nearer they get to the source of that darkness: Evil Incarnate, we’ll call it for now…”

Further information can be found on the abovementioned Hollywood Reporter story which mentions that Clive Barker is attached to the project “every step of the way;” it also reveals the following about the title:

“I don’t want to give too much away just yet, but the concept is that somewhere in northern Africa there is a walled city which is not just a walled city but walls within walls within walls,” Barker said. “It’s like Russian dolls, spaces within each other, and trapped inside each space is a slice of time where the warriors of good have gone against ultimate evil and have lost.”

It’s that fourth dimension that makes Jericho more than a maze. The first battles encountered on the quest are against relatively modern imprisoned soldiers, while further in are World War I infantrymen, Crusaders and other warriors, each drawn from an earlier historical era than the last. “Some are evil, some are not, and you have to make up your own mind,” Barker said.

“It becomes a more primal experience as well, because the means of combat become more crude and the people become in a way simpler,” he said. “I think the player is going to get quite a series of spectacles because they get closer to something that makes the devil look like Pollyanna.”

Clive Barker is also working on The Scarlet Gospels, a horror novel that will see him writing about Pinhead from the Hellraiser series after what seems like eons.

Next-Generation is citing Chinese newspaper reports as suggesting that the PS3 is already being manufactured. According to an unconfirmed report from The Commercial Times, Asustek Computer is working on churning out 200,000 units this month to Sony; more manufacturers are supposed to go online in August.

According to a poll (thanks Kotaku!) by the Japanese arm of Amazon.com, Japanese gamers want the 60GB PlayStation 3 over Nintendo’s Wii. Unsurprisingly, interest in the 20GB version of the console is very limited.

The 60GB PS3 will hit the Japanese market with an open price, though many believe retailers will mark the console to about 70,000 yen ($600 USD).

Seemingly coming out of nowhere is an announcement from Cartoon Network that it is co-operating with Korean game developer Grigon Entertainment on a MMOG.

Dubbed The Cartoon Network MMOG, the game is scheduled for launch in Spring 2008 and will target the television network’s audience of “growing and sophisticated kids.” It will be free to download, with subscription and micro-transactions available to players to enhance the experience. New areas to explore will be added regularly to the game over a span of several years, adding to its gameplay.

Grigon Entertainment is best known for successfully developing and launching several online games in Asia, including Seal Online, a light-hearted RPG. The Cartoon Network MMOG will feature a persistent and expanding world, allowing players to develop their own characters, attributes and possessions. Similar to other MMOGs, the game will also let players meet and interact with other players online, forming virtual friendships and communities. The MMOG will be compliant with the Children’s Online Privacy and Protection Act (COPPA) seeing as how it will be targeted at highly impressionable kids.

Four new awesome screenshots from Need for Speed: Carbon, the upcoming entry in the arcade racer series:

These were shipped:

• Super DragonBall Z
  
• Warpath

And these went gold:

• Dungeon Siege II: Broken World (August 1)
  
• Safecracker

First up, the demos:

• DevastationZone Troopers on CGS Software

And then the patches:

• The Operational Art of War III v3.0.0.17 on Matrix Games
  
• PureSim Baseball 2007 v1.20 on Matrix Games
  
• Wildlife Park 2 v1.04 on the Official Website

THQ is ready to incinerate next-gen consoles! The publisher has announced the formation of Incinerator Games, the latest addition to THQ’s group of internal studios. Comprised of veterans of the Twisted Metal, NFL GameDay, MLB 2006 and the Midnight Club franchises, Incinerator Games is primarily focused on development for next-gen platforms.

Based in Carlsbad, California, the studio is currently working on next-gen versions of Cars, the latest hit movie from Disney/Pixar. The game is set for release this Fall for Xbox 360 and Wii. Future projects are also being worked on at the moment.

I don’t usually post links to game movies anymore, but this is Portal we’re talking about! To be included with Half-Life 2: Episode Two, when it’s released this Holiday season, Portal is a game that pushes the idea from Prey much further.

Available in two resolutions, the clip can be found on 3D Downloads, 3D Gamers, Computer Games.ro, FileFront, Filecloud, Gameguru, GameSpot and Worthplaying.

Licensed music is the in-thing these days, and puzzle games aren’t too far behind! The soundtrack listing for Lumines II was sent out yesterday, revealing tracks from Fatboy Slim, Chemical Brothers, Missy Elliott and many others. Below is the full list:

• Beck – “Black Tambourine”
  
• Black Eyed Peas – “Pump It”
  
• Chemical Brothers – “Star Guitar”
  
• Fatboy Slim – “Gangster Trippin’”
  
• The Go! Team – “Bottle Rocket”
  
• Gwen Stefani – “Hollaback Girl”
  
• Hoobastank – “Born to Lead”
  
• Junior Senior – “Take My Time”
  
• Missy Elliott – “Lose Control”
  
• New Order – TBD
  
• Junkie XL – “Breezer”
  
• Stigmato Inc – “Reality Check”

Music videos from the above artists will be available in the PSP title that will hit North America this November. In addition to the above, Lumines II also features music written exclusively for the game by Japanese artist Shinichi Osawa, also known as MONDO GROSSO (yes, all capital letters), who provided the opening track for the original title. Tracks from Ken Ishii and TECHRIDERS, both from Japan, are also in the game.

The next chapter in Guild Wars, a subscription-free MMORPG, has been announced – Nightfall. It has already entered the beta testing stage and all players are invited to paticiapte in an exclusive, first-look PvP event running from July 28-31.

Players who participate in the preview event will be able to try out the two new professions being introduced: the Dervish, a scythe-wielding holy warrior; and the Paragon, guardian angel of the Elonian people. In addition to playing the upcoming expansion, players will be able to compete for items that will be exchangeable for a variety of rewards throughout the weekend event.

The Guild Wars Nightfall PvP Preview event will kick off on Friday, July 28 at 08:00 BST / 09:00 CET and will continue through Monday, July 31 to 07:59 BST / 08:59 CET.

JoWood has announced SpellForce 2 – Dragon Storm, the “eagerly awaited” expansion to the popular RPG sequel. It is expected to be released this Winter.

SpellForce 2 – Dragon Storm takes players through a fascinating and exciting challenge as they fight for the magical portals, which seem to be the only connection between the shattered islands of Eo. During the search for the font, which could replace the dwindling energy and save the magical portals, the player recovers old runes and amazing traces of the most powerful creatures of the past: dragons…

Experience the ultimate battle when dragons wage a war!

The British superstar developer Peter Molyneux has been announced as one of the keynote speakers at the GCDC in Leipzig this year. Best known for his work on Dungeon Keeper, Theme Park, Black & White and Fable, Molyneux will be presenting at the Games Convention in Germany this August.

Anyone remember The New Zealand Story? Me neither. But Rising Star Games has announced that it is reviving the “most distinctive and original platform games of the 1980s” for release on the DS.

A re-telling of the 1988 classic (I’ll take their word for it), New Zealand Story Revolution will star Tiki, a plucky Kiwi bird, who is off to rescue his kidnapped friends from the clutches of a nefarious leopard seal. The DS game will only see graphical changes, with the core remaining untouched, although the layouts will be “remixed and re-jigged to provide fresh challenges.”

Further information on the title will be announced near its late 2006 release date.

Atari sends along word that Neverwinter Nights 2 has been delayed by a month for more spit and shine:

Given the sheer size and scope of Neverwinter Nights 2 and its 50 to 60-hour single player campaign, it was decided to move the global release date of Neverwinter Nights 2 out a month to late October. This extra time is invaluable as it allows fine tuning and polishing of both the single and multiplayer experiences to ultimately deliver a game that exceeds the tremendous expectations of the Neverwinter Nights fanbase.