Now that the Pink PS2 has been announced, SCEE sent out word that the PSP will be getting the same treatment in Europe, apparently, the result of a “unique” collaboration with pop star Pink.

The limited edition Pink PSP Value Pack will be available starting October 27 and will include a Pink PSP and all related accessories in pink. According to the announcement, the Pink PSP is all about “confident and powerful attitude for young women” and will “enable [the] PSP to push new boundaries.”

“P!nk is a very credible, very hip, and very unique female superstar - one with an appeal that extends well beyond the known pop music universe. She hits the skaters, the gamers, and the rockers alike” said John Fleckenstein, SVP, International, at Zomba Label Group in New York. “The PSP brand commands a ‘cool-factor’ and edginess that makes this partnership a perfect fit. We’re thrilled to have the opportunity to work with the PSP team and to bring P!nk’s music to the brand’s dynamic demographic.”

The Pink Pack will also include an exclusive Pink UMD featuring the artiste’s latest and best music videos, including Stupid Girls, Who Knew and U + Ur Hand, footage of her latest “intimate UK showcase,” an exclusive interview and the exclusive track “Crash and Burn”, not available on any of her albums in Europe. Additionally, more content will be available to those who register their Pink PSP on yourpsp.com.

This “hip, cool and powerful” Pink PSP will retail for €230 (£170) once released on October 27.

The Leipzig Games Convention saw a surprise announcement from Microsoft: next-gen versions of FIFA 07 and Pro Evolution Soccer 6 will be exclusive to the Xbox 360 for the following twelve months. This means that the games will be appearing on current-gen consoles, but won’t be appearing on the PS3 or Wii for a year.

Though Nintendo’s Wii won’t be seeing any officially licensed football game in the next year, the company has announced a new version of Mario Strikers Charged, its own football franchise. The game will feature more team creation options than the original, and will also feature online multiplayer functions. Nintendo also announced Battalion Wars 2, cutely abbreviated “BWii”. A follow-up to Kuju’s action/strategy Gamecube title, the sequel will feature online multiplayer, new units, races, environments and will feature over 20 single-player missions and over 15 multiplayer missions.

Continuing the ever-expanding Tycoon series, Codemasters has announced Hospital Tycoon, a new entry in the franchise from Deep Red Games.

Set for a spring 2007 launch, Hospital Tycoon is a medical-themed God game in which players are put in charge of hectic hospital facilities that are constantly on the verge of crisis and collapse. Players are challenged to run, maintain, enhance and expand the hospitals while turning any chaotic situation around using ingenious management techniques.

The most infectious thing about Hospital Tycoon is its humour as players experience how the game’s characters - the doctors, nurses and patients -interact with each other and react to how well the player is running each hospital. The game’s high level of character interaction will create a living hospital that’s part soap opera and part comedy.

A move away from micro-management life-simulation games, Hospital Tycoon will create emerging situations that are as entertaining as they are challenging. The manic medical teams have to deal with patients suffering from the most peculiar ailments, such as the man afflicted with ‘Monkey Nuts’ and the office worker diagnosed with ‘Stress Zombosis’, and set about curing them with equally odd treatments.

The game is in development exclusively for PC, and is scheduled for release in Spring 2007.

On the Prairie Games website is word that Minions of Mirth is now permanently subscription-free. Scoop: “Originally conceived as a promotional device to help Minions of Mirth attract customers and gain market share, the “pay once and play as long as you like” subscription model has proven to be very effective. The use of this approach helped Minions of Mirth practically quadruple its numbers from 4,000 subscribers to 15,000 subscribers in a matter of weeks.”

Headbangers in Europe will now be able to bang their heads nearer with their North American brethren thanks to Red Octane and Activision who announced that Guitar Hero II will be available in the region this November, shortly after its American release.

Guitar Hero II will be available as a hardware bundle complete with a replica Gibson SG controller or as a standalone disc for owners of the original. The final tracklist for the title is yet to be announced, but RedOctane promises a heady mix of classic and contemporary rock, as well as a couple of surprises.

Eidos will be showing off these games at GC 2006:

JUST CAUSE
In JUST CAUSE, gamers play the role of Rico Rodriguez, a field operative and specialist in regime change, who is charged with overthrowing the corrupt government of San Esperito.

JUSTICE LEAGUE HEROES
JUSTICE LEAGUE HEROES is an action adventure game with role-playing customization featuring Superman, Batman, Green Lantern, The Flash, Wonder Woman, Martian Manhunter, Zatanna and other unlockable Justice League super heroes.

BIONICLE HEROES
BIONICLE HEROES brings to life the most powerful and exciting LEGO characters ever seen, in an action-packed world of adventure and discovery.

BATTLESTATIONS: MIDWAY
For the first time, relive the intensity of massive air, sea and underwater WWII battles in a unique mix of intense action and tactical gameplay as you follow the story of naval recruit Henry Walker.

LARA CROFT: TOMB RAIDER LEGEND (DS)
The seventh title to be released in the Tomb Raider™ series, which originally launched in 1996 and is still one of the best selling videogame franchises of all time, with over 30 million copies sold will be available to play on Nintendo DS.

AGE OF CONAN
Enter a mature, brutal and barbaric universe, in a world filled with cruel gods, mythical creatures, lost civilizations and a struggling human race. King Conan’s rule is on the brink of chaos, spiraling towards doom as ancient evils rise again in this highly anticipated Massively Multiplayer Online Game.

The company will also be showing Kane & Lynch: Dead Men behind closed doors, the forthcoming action title from IO Interactive, the studio behind the Hitman franchise.

Yes, you read that right: ANACONDA will be offering free popcorn at the show. The publisher will present its lineup on a massive screen in Hall 5, booth G02 where guests will be able to take a look at future titles just like in the theatre, with free popcorn included.

In addition, the company’s booth will be host to playable versions of Undercover: Operation Wintersun, Runaway 2, Tony Tough 2, Overclocked and Sabotage.

Midway is showing off these games at Hall 2, stand E50 at the Leipzig Games Convention:

• Stranglehold (PLAYSTATION®3, Xbox 360™, PC; Winter 2007) - Experience exhilarating, next-gen action for the PS3, Xbox 360™ videogame and entertainment system from Microsoft and PC, as you continue the story of Inspector Tequila from John Woo’s influential action film, “Hard Boiled” starring Chow Yun-Fat. Run into danger with both fists full of lead and take down the organized crime bosses who stepped over the line when they took your family. Stop at nothing as you destroy the entire world around you to get them back. You are a desperate man following your own rules; honor thy family; do what’s right; fear no man.

• Unreal Tournament® 2007 (PC, PS3) - The latest entry into the Unreal® franchise, Unreal Tournament® 2007, is currently in development by Epic Games Inc. Fans will be blown away by the next-generation game play, modifiability and visuals that Epic’s Unreal® Engine 3 technology will bring to the franchise.

• Mortal Kombat®: Armageddon (PlayStation®2 computer entertainment system; October 2006) - Introducing Mortal Kombat: Armageddon - the latest chapter in Midway’s best-selling, award-winning, videogame fighting franchise. With the most complete Mortal Kombat roster ever, including every character from the Mortal Kombat fighting universe, revolutionary Create-A-Fighter and Create-A-Fatality modes, Mortal Kombat: Armageddon promises to be one of the most complete, intensely lethal, fighting experience ever!

• Spy Hunter®: Nowhere to Run (PlayStation 2; September 2006) - Spy Hunter®: Nowhere to Run™ takes the Spy Hunter franchise where it’s never gone before - on foot. Featuring action superstar Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson as government super-spy extraordinaire Alex Decker, players for the first time ever can step out of the Interceptor and straight into third-person action, utilizing The Rock’s physical prowess by taking down enemies with intense melee combat moves.

• Happy Feet (PlayStation 2, Nintendo GameCube™, Nintendo Wii, Game Boy® Advance, Nintendo DS™, PC; November 2006) - Based on Warner Bros. Pictures’ upcoming comedy adventure Happy Feet™, Midway’s immersive video game puts the player in the “tap shoes” of Mumble, a young penguin born into a nation of singing Emperor Penguins where each needs a Heartsong to attract a soul mate. Unfortunately, Mumble is the worst singer in the world…however, as it happens, he is a brilliant tap dancer! Based on the general storyline of the film, the player will be able to experience life from the point of view of Mumble in music, dance and interaction with the friends and enemies of the penguin’s world.

• The Ant Bully (PlayStation 2, Nintendo GameCube, Game Boy Advance, PC; Fall 2006 - Nintendo Wii; November 2006) - Go pick on someone your own size! After bullying an innocent ant colony, a young boy named Lucas is magically shrunk down to ant size and embarks on a remarkable adventure. Play as Lucas, experiencing the dangerous and thrilling life of an ant as you battle, explore and forge new friendships with natives and other species in his new ant world. Based on exciting moments from Warner Bros. Pictures upcoming digitally animated family adventure The Ant Bully, and featuring all-new challenges created especially for the game, help Lucas evolve from recluse to hero in his quest to save the colony from extermination

• LA RUSH (PSP system; Fall 2006) - For the first time ever on the PSP system, attempt mad jumps, high-flying stunts and arcade-style racing from the original LA RUSH franchise. Go head to head with a friend in a street race or cruise mission using wireless functionality, or experience Story Mode which allows you to race through 5 Los Angeles city re-creations while finding treacherous shortcuts and surviving death-defying jumps!

• Mortal Kombat®: Unchained (PSP system; Fall 2006) - Mortal Kombat®: Unchained™ takes the Mortal Kombat franchise to new heights with an innovative fighting system tailored for wireless functionality, unparalleled depth and brutally intense action that will appeal to long-time Mortal Kombat fans, as well as new gamers.

EA and DICE have announced Battlefield: Bad Company, a new single-player game in the popular franchise, for PS3 and Xbox 360. Built from the ground-up for next-gen consoles using Digital Illusions’ Frostbite game engine, Bad Company will feature a “deep, cinematic single-player experience loaded with adventure and dark humor.” The game will have players stepping into the shoes of a squad of renegade soldiers behind enemy lines on a personal quest for “gold and revenge.”

As per the announcement, Bad Company will feature sandbox gameplay in an universe where nearly everything is destructible. “The heart of DICE’s multiplayer games is the frenetic, unpredictable nature of the sandbox experience, where anything could happen at any moment, and that’s what we’re bringing to the core of Battlefield: Bad Company’s single-player campaign, said Karl Magnus Troedsson, senior producer at DICE. “In a world that’s 90 percent destructible, the gameplay possibilities are infinite — the battlefield is always changing, forcing players, teammates, and enemies to react accordingly. Gamers will have total freedom to adapt to and tackle challenges in creative Battlefield-style ways.”

Slated to ship sometime next year for the aforementioned consoles, Bad Company will also feature multiplayer options that will make use of the game’s massively destructible environments. No other details or screenshots were released, but EA did send out an image showing highly detailed soldiers’ faces.

In a move that is sure to be a hit among girls (and sensitive men), SCEE has announced that the PS2 will now also be available in Pink. The new, limited edition Pink PS2 will be available from selected retailers throughout Europe from November 8 and will come complete with Pink colored controllers and memory cards. It will retail for €160 (£130 in UK) bundled with a copy of SingStar Pop.

“The Pink PlayStation 2 is funky, fresh, and fashionable, and will further broaden the console’s continuing popularity and relevance with a fun new twist,” said Dan Hill, PS2 European Brand Manager.

The new Pink PS2 will make its girly debut at the Leipzig Games Convention that is going on as I write this.

Although the company denied any price cuts just a few weeks ago, Sony’s European division has announced that the PS2 will now retail for €130 (£95) in the region; the price of the 8MB memory card for the console has also had its price cut to €20.

The price reduction can be attributed to “significant advances in manufacturing efficiency” which has seen global shipments of over 106 million units worldwide.

Having already released two free map packs for Ghost Recon: Advanced Warfighter, Ubisoft announced that it is going to release one final map pack to the community and is offering the chance to beta test it. Those interested in testing the pack, which will include a new Siege mode, should head here. As an incentive, the announcement offers word that beta testers stand to “win exclusive GR goodies.”

Those bloody terrorists are at work again in JoWood’s The Mark, an upcoming FPS that has players donning the role of US Marine corps officer Steve Fletcher and Austin Hawke as they battle international terrorism in London. They are to stop a “deadly” nuclear package before it reaches London, killing thousands of innocents.

The Mark is set for release this Fall. More information is expected from GC 2006.

THQ is showing off these games at the Leipzig Games Convention:

• Saints Row
  
• Frontlines: Fuel of War
  
• WWE SmackDown vs. Raw 2007
  
• S.T.A.L.K.E.R. Shadow of Chernobyl
  
• Supreme Commander
  
• Company of Heroes
  
• Warhammer® 40,000 DawnTM of War - Dark Crusade
  
• Broken Sword: The Angel of Death
  
• Disney-Pixar Cars
  
• Destroy All Humans!® 2
  
• SpongeBob SquarePants: Creature from the Krusty Krab
  
• Monster House
  
• Bratz: Forever Diamondz: Yasmin, Cloe, Sasha and Jade
  
• Barnyard
  
• Avatar: The Last Airbender

Lexicon Entertainment has announced that it has acquired the worldwide rights to Chronos Twins for DS; the company previously scored a deal for American McGee’s Bad Day LA. The company is also in final discussions for another four DS titles.

Chronos Twins, scheduled for a Q1 2007 release, plays on the concept of time travel. Here’s what players will get into: “To successfully complete levels, players will maneuver through an area and work within the limitations of each time period in a side-scrolling environment. The goal is to control both the present-time hero while exploring the planet to defeat alien threats. Both time periods are fully visible through a split-screen engine that displays the past and present versions of the exact same location.”